Heart Of Freedom
by Kedrex
Summary: What happens when a pure embodiment of darkness meets a puppet replica of light? A big adventure. RATED T for mild language.
1. Chapter 1

CHAPTER 1: VANITAS

It's the same every day. I wake up, eat, and think about my past. I was an entity born of darkness with the sole purpose of creating the ultimate weapon. The _X-_ BLADE (Key blade). But I failed and was destroyed. After that I ended up in the realm of darkness, a beach with darkness surrounding it at every turn. The only source of light is the faint light over the horizon.

My name is Vanitas Void. I decided I should at least have my own last name. My body suggests that my age is about 15 years but I've been this way for ten years. I'm not sure why I don't age, but it may have to do with the fact that I was born of the darkness or because time may not move within the dark realm for anyone. My hair is a pitch black color and very spiky. My eyes are what really set me apart from most people, mainly because they're not blue, green, or brown, they're piercing yellow. Aside from that there's nothing that really distinguishes me from anyone else. Over the years I've lived here I've learned to make new clothing so that I don't wear the same thing day after day. So today I simply wore black jeans and a black t-shirt.

On most days I walk along the beach for hours until I get tired. As usual I walked out of the little home I'd lived in for so many years to begin my walk, but nothing could prepare me for what I saw next. As I looked to the beach I saw something much larger than anything I'd seen wash up on shore before. No, wait. That's not _something,_ that's a _someone_. I rushed over to the person laying on the shore thinking that they might be alive. When I finally got a good look at the person I realized it was a girl. She was wearing a black coat that covered her whole body. She looked as though she was 15 as well with short hair as black as mine.

I lifted her to look at her face and she had many bruises and cuts on her face. She then began to stir in her unconscious state. Her eyes had barley opened, but I still saw them. They were as blue as the ocean. "Hey," I said while trying to awaken her, "are you okay?" Before she could answer she immediately fell unconscious again. I picked her up and carried her back to my home.

She laid asleep for many hours. As I cleaned her face of the bruises, questions began to race through my mind. _Where did she come from? How did she get here? Why was she so injured?_ And most importantly, _Who was she?_ So many questions and I had to wait for her waking to have them answered.

 **A/N So I decided to make another story with chapters. I don't know how long this one's gonna go but I hope it hit quite a number of chapters. Feel free to drop a review. As long as it doesn't consist of the word update.**


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2: XION

My name is Xion. I was a member of a group know only as ORGANIZATION XIII. I was their fourteenth member, the wielder of the Keyblade. My main job was to collect hearts in order to create KINGDOM HEARTS. My second job was unknown to me. I was to steal the powers of one of my best friends, Roxas, and take his place once he was eliminated. But I refused to go along with their horrendous plans. In the end I had run from the Organization and I forced Roxas to eliminate me. I had hurt him, but in reality, I was never supposed to exist. I'm a clone, or 'puppet', that was meant to copy the powers of a keyblade wielder, and be a tool for the Organization.

When I was destroyed, I could see what was happening. I had hurt Roxas so much. I saw him cry. At first I thought I was imagining it. Roxas is a NOBODY, a being without a heart, so he shouldn't have ANY emotions to start crying. I'm just glad that he won't be able to remember what I forced him to do. My existence was formed from memories, so when I disappeared, everyone slowly started to forget I was ever there.

The next thing I know, I'm on a beach, looking at a boy with spiky hair. However I was so dazed that I couldn't make out a face _._ And as quickly as I woke, I fell back to sleep. I dreamt about the boy I saw and could only wonder who he was and how I was even alive. Very soon I had woken in an extremely comfortable bed. I surveyed the room in which I had woken, and it was very tidy, but that was mainly because there wasn't much in there. I saw a bookcase with about 30 books in alphabetical order. One of the books that caught my eye was a book by Edgar Alan Poe. It looked very old and beat up, but in a way, that just made it look more appealing to me.

Suddenly I smelled something, and immediately I wanted whatever it was. I slowly walked over to the door and peeked through to the other room. I saw someone cooking something on, what looked to be, a wide and thin looking rock, over a blazing fire. The smell of the food was intoxicating. Naturally I felt the urge to grab whatever it was and chow down, but I simply couldn't. It wasn't my food to take. Very quietly, I closed the door and began looking for a window, but to my misfortune, there was no window in this room. The only way out was through the door. Suddenly I heard footsteps coming closer, so I immediately laid back on the bed the exact way that I was before I had woken up.

Very soon the door had opened. I heard the boy's footsteps getting closer, and closer until they had finally stopped moving. I laid perfectly still making sure not to make any facial expressions. But unfortunately it doesn't seem like that worked.

"I know you're awake," the boy noted aloud. His voice was deep and soothing to my ears. But no matter what, I wasn't going to let this guy be 100 percent sure that I was awake. "Listen I'm not gonna hurt you. I was just wondering if you wanted something to eat." I didn't budge an inch. I didn't know this person, and what's more, I wasn't even sure how I was alive. How was I supposed to trust someone I hadn't even met before?

"Fine," the boy said. I heard him get up and then the sound of a plate being put down next to me caught my attention. There was obviously food on it, and it smelled delicious.. "I'll just leave this here until you decide whether or not you're going to eat it." The sound of his footsteps grew quieter, and quieter, until I heard the door close behind him.

I decided not to take any chances that he might still be in the room, so I barely, and slowly peeked my left eye open to see that he was nowhere in sight. He had actually left. I very quickly turned my attention to the food he had left. _Should I eat it,_ I thought to myself. _But if I do, that will just indicate that I was awake._ I then decided not to eat the food and to just wait until the boy outside fell asleep. Then I would make my escape.

As I waited for his constant movements in the other room to die down, before trying anything, I began to re-examine the room I had awoken in. Then I noticed a mirror. As I looked into it I had finally noticed the bandages and patches on my face. I forgot that I had been in an extreme fight with my best friend, Roxas, before I came to, where ever I was. But it looks as though that boy from earlier treated my wounds. Not to mention the fact that he brought me food, and is letting me sleep on his bed. Maybe he was a nice person. And the food he made for me looked and smelled so good. He's been so nice to me and I haven't even thanked him.

Then suddenly the door had opened. I had been so deep in thought, that I hadn't even heard him coming. There was no acting away my unconscious state anymore. The only thing I could do was stare at those golden yellow eyes of his.

 **A/N So the story's gonna keep alternating between Xion's and Vanitas's POV. Be sure to drop a review.**


	3. Chapter 3

CHAPTER 3: VANITAS

As I opened the door to my bedroom, where I had put that girl from earlier, I was expecting to see her lying back on the bed pretending to be asleep again. But to my surprise, she was simply standing in front of the mirror gazing at me. Her sea blue eyes had me completely stunned to the point that I forgot why I had come into the room into the first place. "Good morning," I began, "Faker." Instantly her face began to grow a little pink with shock. I simply smirked.

"G-Good morning," the girl said timidly. She didn't say anything after that. Instead she just stared at me like I was someone she knew. "Um..."

She sounded like she wanted to ask me a question, but the words just didn't seem to be coming out of her mouth. So I began to speak in order to snap here out of her puzzled look. "Is there something you wanted to ask me?

Almost as if a bell went off in her head she finally spat it out. "Would your name happen to be, Sora?"

And so I became puzzled. Who was _Sora_? And more importantly, why did she ask me that? "No," I answered. "My name is Vanitas. And just who are you?"

"Oh, my name's Xion."

 _Xion huh? Why does that name sound so familiar to me? I know I've never met anyone named Xion before._ The only two women I met, when I wasn't stuck in this realm, were the evil fairy, Maleficent, and that Keyblade wielder with the blue hair, Aqua. I was was so lost in my daze that I hadn't noticed that Xion was starring at me, almost like she was analyzing me. "Excuse me," I began, "but why are you starring at me like that?" From the looks of things she didn't even notice what she was doing herself.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" Realizing what was going on she quickly backed away from me. In almost a split second she had lowered her head into a bowing position. "Thank you for all that you've done. But I should probably be going."

As she began walking past me I had placed my hand on her shoulder. I must have startled her because she practically jumped out of her skin. "Do you even know where we are?" She turned to face me with a very confused face. I had to take that as a 'NO'. "This is the Realm of Darkness." Her face instantly went from confusion to shock in less than a second. "This place is inescapable. I've been here for 10 years."

After explaining where we were, I decided to take her outside to see the realm. Explaining practically everything I had learned in the past 10 years as we walked along the edge of the shore. She seemed to be taking in everything I said quite well. If I didn't know any better, I'd say she dealt with problems like these on a daily basis.

"And that's pretty much it. This place is one way in, no way out."

She looked at me like I didn't seem to know something about this place. "Well, that's not entirely true." Immediately my feet had stopped moving. What could she have been talking about? "You see, I was in this group a while back, called Organization XIII, and a few of the members said they'd been here before." Wait, was it possible? Had people come to and left from this place on a regular basis? "But this is the first time I've ever been here. They told me if I ever came here alone, I'd end up getting trapped, since I wasn't like the other members. I wouldn't be able to open the passage way because of what I am."

I wanted to know just what the hell she was talking about. How was she different from the other members of this 'Organization XIII'? I have so many questions to ask her. I might as well start with the obvious ones. "So, how'd you get so injured Xion?" She instantly stopped in her tracks. It must have been a sensitive subject for her to do that so quickly. "Sorry," I apologized.

"It's OK," she replied. She didn't even turn to face me when she spoke. I wasn't sure what could have happened to her to make her so anti-social. "I got into a... _Disagreement_ with my friends."

I wasn't buying that. "Well that must've been one hell of a disagreement."

"Y-Yeah," she stuttered, "it was." She then turned to face me. "Vanitas, can I ask you a few questions?" I wasn't totally surprised. After all I had been asking quite a few myself, but I always hated questions, at least when I was being asked. So instead of getting defensive, I simply nodded. "Who are you?" The first question. I wasn't expecting something like that, but it still wasn't enough to throw me into complete shock. "I mean, it's pretty clear to me that you're no more normal than I am."

For a moment my gaze was locked onto her. The faint light shining off of her kept me gazing, but then I turned to face the horizon. As I walked closer to the water, I began to wonder how I could go about this. I had done terrible things in the past. Back then I saw enjoyment in destruction, fear, torture, and so many things that the list seemed endless. Over the past 10 years I had realized how wrong it was of me, and how twisted I was. Could I really tell her about everything I did? "Well, I'm a creature that was born from the dark part of the heart of a boy called Ventus. In a way, I'm made out of nothing but darkness." I decided on the truth. "I worked for a man called, Xehanort. He was my master, and I severed under him for years, until my heart and body were destroyed in a battle." Just not the WHOLE truth. "And eventually I washed up here. Now I no longer have any heart."

Xion held her hand up to her chest as though feeling to see if her heart was still there. "It's ironic," she began. "You see, the Organization is composed of 13 NOBODIES, beings without hearts. And for a while, I severed as number 14, but I was never really one of them. In actuality, I'm a puppet replica of a boy named Sora. I was meant to copy his powers. So in a way, I _AM_ a NOBODY, but I have a heart." She looked like she could explain this for hours and still never be done. "My image was formed from his memories of a girl, Kairi. The only difference is that my hair is black and hers is red. And once I was destroyed, the memories of me slowly began to vanish from all of my friends, and anyone who ever knew me." I couldn't help but feel bad for her. "And the reason I asked you if your name was Sora, is because you look exactly like him."

"Well I've never even met a guy named Sora." The name did sound familiar though, almost as if it would be right to be called 'Sora'. "Anyway, you might as well get used to being stuck here. I know I have."

Her face became so sadly sympathetic after I said that. She moved closer to me and took my hand within hers. "But don't you want to leave this place?"

Almost instantly I pulled my hand away. "Of coarse I want out of here, but how exactly do you intend to get out?" I knew there was no escape from this place. "I gave up years ago." Hell, I didn't deserve to escape. This place was my HELL. "Do yourself a favor, and give up hope. It'll be a lot easier then." I walked away. If I stayed any longer, I probably would have said something I might regret later.

 **A/N So Only the first few chapters are meant to really get us introduced to their relationship. Feel free to drop that review.**


	4. Chapter 4

CHAPTER 4: XION

After the first day here I decided to check as much of the Dark Realm as I could. For hours upon hours, I searched as much of the beach as I could. I came across many things that washed on shore. Food, clothing, and so many other random things. It made me wonder where it was all coming from.

"From other worlds," Vanitas spoke behind me. He was so quiet, I practically jumped out of my skin when I heard him. "I know what you're thinking. 'Where did all this stuff come from?' Am I right?" He wasn't wrong. "All this stuff is what's left from lost possessions of the other worlds. I've even found pieces of wrecked ships from other worlds that I visited when I was working with Xehanort."

"So why haven't you built a ship or a raft and escaped by now?" I would have. He even had enough supplies to build his house, and it looked great, for a make shift house that is.

He then turned away from me. Almost like there was some kind of guilt behind the question. "Xion," he began, "I haven't been completely honest with you. I wasn't always alone out here." He turned away from me like he was ashamed. "Before, there was another person here. His name was Mortem."

"Mortem?"

"It's Latin for Death." Enough said. "He had them same idea as you regarding leaving. When he tried to, his ship was struck by lightning." Wait, what?! "He didn't survive."

I rested my hand on his shoulder to comfort him. "Vanitas, that was an accident."

He stayed silent. It made me feel a little un easy. "No. It wasn't any kind of accident." Is he blaming himself for what happened. "Xion, it couldn't have been an accident."

"Why?"

"Because out of all ten years I've been here, that was the only time I saw any form of weather." I couldn't believe what I was hearing. After what he told me, I didn't have much of a choice. "Anyone unlucky enough to get stuck here can never leave."

So this means I'll never get a chance to see Roxas or Axel ever again? "So we're stuck here?" He nodded. I can't believe it.

For the rest of the day I just sat in front of the ocean, looking out over the horizon. Every now and then something small would wash up on shore. I kept hoping that a Sea-Salt Ice-Cream bar, still wrapped and frozen, would wash up. I could really use one right now. Vanitas tried to bring me some food earlier, but I wasn't in the mood to eat anything. I'm glad he didn't try to give me the whole "You gotta eat to keep your strength up" speech. He told me we can't starve in this place.

As I recalled on the memories of Roxas and Axel, it hit me. Did I still have my Keyblade? I reached out my right hand, and to my surprise, it appeared. Sort of. It had the physical appearance of my original, but the color scheme was different. The hand was now pink, the guard was red, and the actual blade was pure white. My key chain had changed as well. Now it was a sea shell.

"You're a Keyblade wielder," Vanitas asked behind me, which by the way, scared the life out of me. I practically jumped out of my skin.

"Vanitas! Would you stop sneaking up on me?!" That may have sounded meaner than I meant for it to be.

"Sorry," he apologized. "It's just, I never pegged you for a Keyblader. You seemed way to jumpy and timid."

I was gonna just let that one go, considering he just freaked me out a second ago. Now I was a little agitated. Who was he to tell me how a Keyblader should act? "So how do you know about Keyblades," I asked trying to sound cool and collected. He then sighed and held up his right hand. Suddenly darkness surrounded his hand, and a Keyblade, with a gear like theme, appeared in his hands. Remember how I jumped before? Well now I felt like I'd gone into low orbit. Of coarse he has a Keyblade too. And I said that with sarcasm.

 **A/N: So the next chapter is where things should get way more interesting. I can't promise a new chapter every day. I'm writing as fast as I can, so if you check in regularly, don't get disappointed if there isn't a new chapter out yet. As always feel free to drop a review on this chapter**


	5. Chapter 5

CHAPTER 5: VANITAS

After learning about Xion's ability to wield a keyblade, I found a way to pass the time for the next 3 weeks. She and I trained every day. Forget my usual routine. I was ecstatic to do something else for a change.

"Hey Xion," I called, trying to get her attention. "What do ya say we take a break from me mopping you all over the beach." It felt good to be more like my old self. Taunting my opponents felt like a good strategy. It usually made them do something stupid that always made them lose. Xion just smiled at me. Almost like she knew what I was up to.

"Aaaaawww," she began to taunt. "Is wittle Vani tywerd." I was actually taken back. No one had ever taunted me. I felt my face getting warm all of a sudden. Before I knew it, Xion was actually giggling at me. That was her mistake. When she giggled, she closed her eyes. I dashed towards her to teach her a lesson about what happens when you take your eyes of your opponent. I was 3 feet from her when she surprised me with a grab, then tossed me to the ground. I fell onto the sandy beach, and Xion fell on me.

Her chest was laying on top of mine, and our faces were only inches apart. The look of shock laid in her eyes said this wasn't what she was trying to do. Suddenly I felt a rapid thumping on my chest. What I was feeling was her heart racing. As I looked into her eyes, I found myself leaning closer, as did she. Her eyes were closing slowly, as well as mine. I could feel her heart racing faster the closer we got.

Out of nowhere, something new caught our attention. We looked off to the distance to see a gigantic wall of light and two figures moving towards it. I couldn't notice any specific characteristics on the guy on the right. But the one on the left had the same spiky hair I did. Xion and I got up as quickly as we could and ran for the two. Had they been stuck here too? And why is there a portal of light opening up here?

The questions didn't matter to me. Xion and I just kept running. "Vanitas," she screamed while running right next to me. "Where do you think those two went?!"

"I don't know!" But I'm willing to find out. "That's a corridor of light! They don't open like that very often! All we need to do is jump through before it closes!" The two who went through had already left, and the portal was closing. No! I will not spend another second here if I can escape! It was gonna be a close call. I grabbed Xion's hand and leapt towards the closing portal. Next thing I knew, she and I were lying in some kind of pavilion, surrounded by people looking down at us. For a moment I couldn't believe it. We actually made it out.

I looked past the numerous people and allowed something to catch my attention. The warmth and brightness of the sun. I hadn't felt it for so many years. The realm of darkness always had a sort of cold vibe to it. Imagine living with that for 10 years. I turned my attention from the sun to the unconscious girl, who's hand I was still holding, tightly I might add.

Before I knew it, there were people surrounding us. Asking if we were alright and how we survived falling from the sky. Yes, that's right. I said FALLING FROM THE SKY. I had no idea how to explain this to these people. 'Oh I just happened to fall from the realm of darkness with this girl I've known for a total of 3 weeks!' How much crazier could you get?

I took a look around the area, and it looked kinda familiar. It reminded me of RADIANT GARDEN. Then I noticed a sign, Radiant Garden Items. Wow, it looks kinda different, compared to what it was ten years ago. Kinda beat up actually. At long last, I was tired of all the people surrounding me and the unconscious Xion, so I decided to play a panic trick.

In order to send the people in a panic, I carefully unleashed a small wave of my FLOOD unversed. They're little monsters that are formed from my negative emotions. Considering I don't exactly like large groups of people around me, I had a lot of discomfort here to work with.

As the Floods caused the people to scatter in fear, I took my chance and put Xion over my back. Piggy-Back style. I ordered the unversed, mentally, to keep from harming people. Last this I need is people looking into the unversed. I knew for a fact that we were now far enough away that I could order them to return their power to me. Then I remembered something. When I was last here, I set up a security account, full of Munny, in the Radiant Garden Bank. If that account was still there, the interest would have made me a lot of money. Time to find a bank.

 **A/N OMG THEY'RE FREE! Feel free to drop a review.**


	6. Chapter 6

CHAPTER 6: XION

The last thing I remember was going through the Light Portal. Next thing I knew, I was being carried on Vanitas's back through a city. WAIT! A CITY?! Did we actually make it out of the dark realm? I was amazed with the look of the city alone. And feeling the warmth of the sun, oh 3 weeks in that realm really made me miss this.

"Hey," I spoke to let him know I was awake. He turned his head to me to let me know I had his attention. "How long have I been out?"

"Not long," he answered. "About 30 minutes." After that he put me down so I could walk.

"So, where are we?"

"This is Radiant Garden." Judging by the fact that he answered that so quickly, I guess he's been here before. "I came here a few times, during my travels ten years ago. I'm hoping the munny I put into the bank is still there."

We ended up walking for about an hour before we finally found a nearby bank. It was next to some kind of Ice-Cream shop, that was being run by a talking duck. After all the strange things I've seen during my time as an Organization field operative, not even that was enough to surprise me.

Right now Vanitas is talking to the bank clerk, trying to find out if his munny is still there. And I'm patiently waiting for him to finish. "BITCHIN," he screamed. It was so sudden that I practically jumped out of my skin. After he realized that how he scared the life out of me, the clerk, and everyone else in the building, he raised his hand towards everyone and said, "sorry." I giggled a little bit myself.

"So, how much munny did you have," I asked.

He just looked at me with a grin. "Oh, not much," he said, a little slyly. "Just somewhere around 30 million." HOLY EFFING CRAP! He has that much munny?! He just grinned at me after seeing my extremely shocked face. "First things first."

"Huh, what do you mean?" Then I heard a small growl. It took me a second to realize it was Vanitas's stomach. Was he really hungry? Then I felt mine grumble too. I didn't get it, we ate a little while before we left the dark realm, so how are we hungry?

"I guess living back on that beach, I forgot I need to eat a little more." Okay, is he capable of reading minds? "Fatigue and famine don't seem to effect us the same way there like every other world does." How does that explain anything? We still ate. Then again, I guess since the amount of food we actually did eat wasn't much, it makes sense that our bodies our reacting this way.

"So I guess the only question is, where do we eat first?"

As we walked out of the building, we looked around for any nearby restaurants. All we could find was the ice-cream shop that was being run by the talking duck. "How 'bout we just get some ice-cream for now," I suggested, pointing at the small shop. Since it was the only place nearby, he was more than willing to comply.

As we got closer, I saw more features on the one running the shop. He had circular glasses, a hat, and was dress in a blue jacket. "Well hello lad and lass," he greeted to us. "Can I interest you in any ice-cream?"

Wow, he was so kind. "Well, what do you recommend," I asked, ready to eat almost anything.

"Ha ha, I have just the perfect thing for ya," he said pulling out two Popsicles that looked VERY familiar. "This one is called-"

"SEA SALT ICE-CREAM," I excitedly yelped. After I realized I interupted him, I felt so embarrassed. "I'm sorry."

The elderly duck just smiled at me. "Ah, it's alright lassie. Actually I'm glad to see someone as enthusiastic about this here treat as I am."

Vanitas had been so quiet the entire time. By the time I remembered he was still with me, yes I kinda forgot when the excitement kicked in, I noticed he was looking at me like I was acting way too excited about Ice-cream. "I take it you've had this particular ice-cream before," he asked.

I simply nodded. Roxas, Axel, and I used to go up to the clock tower after nearly every mission and just eat ice-cream and talk. It's too bad we never got to go to the beach though. I wonder how they're doing. "So, how much for the two?"

The old duck simply laughed. "I'll tell ye what. Since you're such a fan, one to another, this time they're on the house."

What? I couldn't do that? I mean, it's not like Vanitas couldn't afford it! "Yeah, that's fine with me," he stated aloud. Wait, he has more than enough to pay for it, and he's not gonna pay?!

I crossed my arms and gave him a stern glare. "Now Vanitas, you know you've got more than enough money to pay," I lectured. He actually looked shocked that I even knew how to glare. Either that or no one's ever done it to him before.

All he did at first was give a sort of half glare, half smirk. It was almost like he thought what I was suggesting was ridiculous. It's strange that I didn't notice that he has a sort of jerkish side. After about 30 uncomfortable seconds of my glare, he sighed in defeat. "Yeah, yeah," he said, "okay that's fair. So, how much are they?"

Haha, my glare's his ultimate weakness.

 **A/N: So uploading might take a little more time than usual now that my internet is down at home, so sorry. As always feel free to drop a review on this chapter.**


	7. Chapter 7

CHAPTER 7: VANITAS

I can't believe that little pest. She actually managed to out glare ME! I must be losing my edge. What's more, she told me not to eat mine yet. Said she wants to head up to a high point before we eat. Honestly, I was a little surprised to see so much of this world in ruin. It was so stable all those years ago, now the wall that encircled the city was being put under reconstruction, due to an explosion. When we looked to our right, we saw the town's castle. I remember that back then, this town had a great leader who lived there.

"Hey," Xion said, breaking out of my daze. "Why don't we go there," she suggested, pointing at the castle. She actually wants to go to a castle. Am I just now realizing how crazy she is? Naturally I agreed, due to my natural need to eat my freakin ice-cream. We sat on the edge of the nearby safety rail and finally she told me I could eat the damn ice-cream. "Okay, try it!"

As I took a bite of the treat I could feel her watching me like a hawk. When the taste finally registered to my senses, I actually felt shocked as to how good it was. "Wow," I said, "it's salty, but sweet." Xion just giggled at me. Why does she have to do that. I mean, I think it's cute and all but c'mon. Wait, cute? Glad I didn't say that out loud. I mean it's not that I don't like her, but... Ya know what? I'm just gonna drop it.

Xion noticed my confusion towards her giggle. "It's kinda funny," she said, confusing me even more. "I said the exact same thing the first time I ate this too. Me and my friends would get this particular ice-cream and watch them sunset, on top of the clock tower, after nearly every mission." So that's why she wanted to be here.

We spent the next 10 minutes eating our ice-cream, then we just relaxed, and took in the scenery. I took a look at the clothes we were wearing and immediately knew we needed some new ones. After falling from the sky, our clothes were really torn and practically destroyed. "Hey, Xion," I said getting her attention. "Why don't we head back into town and get some new clothes? The ones we have now are kinda ruined." She took a look at her own and agreed with me.

We were just about to leave when all of a sudden, we ran into someone. "Huh," said a tall man in biker clothes, with brown hair and blue eyes. "Sora, is that you? What's up with the black hair?" Wait, this guy knew Sora? He kept walking toward us, until he got close enough to realize that I wasn't this Sora guy he knew. "Wait, yellow eyes? You're not Sora."

"Geez, really," I asked sarcastically, "and here I thought my name was Vanitas."

Naturally since I was being rude, Xion actually punched me in the shoulder. "Vani," she yelled, using a shorter version of my name, which I already don't like. "That is no way to greet someone!" She then turned her attention to the biker guy, and bowed her head. "I'm so sorry. He's not very good with most people."

I didn't see why she was apologizing for me. It's not like I told her to. The other guy simply smiled. "It's okay," he responded, clearly accepting the apology. "I just thought you might be this guy I know. You two look a lot alike. Except for the hair and eyes."

"Yeah, I get that a lot," I said. What's up with me? Why am I feeling so aggressive? This guy hasn't done anything to really upset me, but I feel like I just need to fight him. "Hey, what's your name?"

He looked shocked that I would ask such a thing. Then he just smirked at me. "I take it you're not even from this world, are you," he asked. So, he knows. "Everyone here knows who I am. So since you're clearly new here, the name's Leon."

Now I let a smirk spread on my face. "Okay Leon, let's fight!"

Xion immediately got on my case about that one. "Vanitas," she began to scold. "You can't go around picking fights with people like that!"

Leon raised his hand to catch her attention. "It's okay," he said. "Things have been a little quiet around here lately, so I'm actually peckish for a little action."

Xion mouth dropped like a rock and she face palmed herself. "Boys."

Leon gestured for us to follow him into the castle. I'd never actually been inside it when I was here before. I bet it look a lot better back then than it does now. Walls half destroyed, pipes busted, and holes everywhere. "So, where are we headed," I asked.

"There's a large room somewhere deep in the castle, perfect for a dual. If we fight out there we might injure the construction crew working on the exterior." We walked into a small circular room, covered in dust, broken jars, an old desk, and a giant portrait. Wait, the portrait looks like that Terra guy, but with silver hair, and... XEHANORT'S YELLOW EYES! I had to keep my face from going into complete shock. He actually did it. He took control over Terra's body.

"Hey, Leon. Do you know the guy in this picture," I asked pointing at the man I knew as, Terra.

"Not really. Sora said his name was Ansem, but the Ansem I knew 10 years ago was a much older man. Also he was a peace keeper and a scientist."

I turned my attention to Xion for a second. When she looked at the picture, her face looked almost horrified. Does she know him? "Xion," I said trying to get her attention. She turned to me with a pale look on her face. "You okay?"

"Y-Yeah," she said nodding.

"Anyway," I continued, trying to change the subject. "So if you're planning on fighting in the cramped room, then it's going to be a short fight."

Leon just chuckled. "We're not there yet," he replied. He turned around and placed his hand on the wall, and it lit up in a flash of light. It was so bright, I had to shut my eyes. When I opened them again, that section of the wall was gone. Now there was a corridor leading into a ginormous room. "THAT down there is where we'll be fighting."

I looked down towards the lower level, and saw a large round platform. So that's where we'll be fighting. WICKED!

 **A/N: So I have a feeling this story will last for a long time. I don't know how long but we'll see. As always feel free to drop a review.**


	8. Chapter 8

CHAPTER 8: XION

I can't believe Vanitas would just tell someone to fight him, like it was a natural thing. We passed by what looked like a fairly high tech computer, and entered the elevator. "So Leon," I spoke. "what are all these machines for?"

"Basically, they're used for creating these monsters called, Heartless," he replied. So all these machines create Heartless? If Xemnas ever got ahold on this machine... I don't even wanna think about what he would have done with it. Then again, judging by the painting, I wouldn't be surprised if he built this thing.

"What's a Heartless," asked Vanitas.

Leon and I both stopped right there. Vanitas really doesn't know what Heartless are? "Well, in most cases," I began to explain, "when someone gives into the darkness completely, they transform into a heartless. Other times, they steal someone's heart, which inevitably turns them into one. But that's Only for pure Heartless. One's with emblems on them aren't the same way. They're a bit more complicated."

Before I could continue, he put up his hand to ask me to stop. "Forget I asked," he said. I don't get him sometimes.

"But Vanitas, you have a Keyblade. Didn't they ever come after you?"

He simply shook his head. "Wait," Leon spoke up. "You have a Keyblade?" Vanitas simply nodded. "Wow, so does Sora." Instantly Vani's face went sour. I wonder if Leon realizes that comparing him to Sora is really getting on his nerves. "Then I guess it's a really good thing we're going to this lower level," Leon said laughing.

As the elevator opened I felt an urge to run away. Being dead center of a Heartless manufacturing machine isn't exactly my idea of a good and Leon headed towards the center of them platform for their pointless dual. Vanitas summoned his Keyblade, which he called Void Gear. Leon on the other hand held out his right hand, and a huge blade appeared. What was strange about his weapon was that it didn't have a guard. Instead what I saw looked like part of a revolver.

"You ready, Vanitas," he asked sportingly. Vanitas simply smirked and nodded his head.

As soon as he did, they charged each other. Leon took the first swing. Big mistake. That sword is way to big for any swift movements, and Vanitas is fast on his feet. Leon swung his blade straight down, and Vanitas sidestepped. He had the perfect opening. He went for a straight attack to his head, but was stopped when Leon managed to pull his sword up enough to block the strike. He's better than I thought he'd be.

For the longest time, the two of them went back and forth. I know for a fact that it's been at least twenty minutes, and neither of them has landed a single hit. Then Vanitas made a mistake. He saw Leon getting ready for an upwards side slash. Instinctively he dodged backwards, trying to get out of range, but Leon wasn't aiming for him. He managed to knock Vanitas's Keyblade away. After the shock of losing his weapon, Vanitas lost his footing. Before he knew it, Leon's blade was up against his throat.

"Give up," Leon asked, smirking.

Vanitas smiled softly and nodded. "Yeah, guess I lost." I was surprised. Was he really happy that he lost?

Leon started walking towards the elevator. "I'm gonna go get us some drinks," he announced. "Be right back."

After he left, I went and sat down next to Vanitas. "So," I began, "I noticed something interesting." He looked at me like he wanted to know. "During that fight, it was hard to be sure, but I'm pretty sure you were smiling the whole time." His face went a little red after that, and I just started giggling.

"Yeah," he replied. "That's because I felt at peace." Wait, what is he talking about? "You see, when I'm in a battle, I get to leave everything else behind. It's all about what's right in front of me, and not any of the other crap going through my head."

Wow. Three weeks together, and this is the first time he's even mentioned that. I think I'm starting to understand why he wanted to fight Leon now. I could tell that he was strong. Is that why Vani acted like that towards him? "Hey, Vani," I spoke to keep his attention. He looked at me with a slightly annoyed look. Guess he doesn't like his new nickname, too bad. "I'm really glad that I got to meet you." His face instantly went into a bright red blush.

"W-where'd that come from," he blurted, clearly flustered.

I felt a soft smile spread across my face. "It's just that I think you're a really great guy." What I hadn't noticed was that my hand was slowly starting to overlap his. Pretty soon we both noticed. However wide his eyes were and blushed his face looked, I'm 100 percent sure mine was more than double. Without realizing it, I was drifting slowly towards him. I felt like my heart was gonna pop out of my chest, it was beating so fast. I didn't realize it but, apparently he was leaning in too. His eyes were slowly starting to close, as were mine. Now my eyes were closed shut. I just knew we were only about an inch from each other when...

Suddenly we heard a loud alarm in the castle go off. Not knowing what was going on, we ran for the elevator. On the way up, all I could think about was what we were about to do. Why was I getting so close to him like that?

 **A/N: Damn that alarm! What a buzz killer. Sorry for such a late update. Feel free to drop that review! :]**


	9. Chapter 9

CHAPTER 9: VANITAS

Damn that alarm! I was enjoying that moment with Xion! I wonder what's going on though. As I rushed out of the elevator with Xion, we ended up findind Leon in front of the computer from earlier. "Tron, Tron," he yelled at the computer frantically. "Tron can you hear me? What's going on in there?"

Oh he's trying to contact someone through the computer. "Leon what's going on," I asked.

"That's what I'm trying to figure out."

The computer then started flashing like crazy. "Leon," it spoke. "Leon, can you read me?"

"Tron! I read you! What's going on?!"

"A program has resurfaced since he realized the MCP was taken out. He's already taken over half of the grid!" What the hell are the two of them talking about? What the hell is the grid? "Are Sora and the others there?"

"No Tron," Leon answered. "They're off somewhere else. Could I come and take their place?"

"Out of the question! This program is trying to gain access to the DTD. If it does, it could take out the entire town. You need to make sure the heartless it makes doesn't make it out of the castle!"

If Leon can't go to this guy, maybe I can. "Leon, why don't I go for you," I asked. "You can keep your eyes on the town, and I'll meet with this Tron guy."

Leon looked at me with a smirk. "You're kinda like him," he said. Why do I have a feeling he's comparing me to Sora? "Hey Tron, did you catch that?"

"Yes. That could work. Send them to the I/O Tower. I'll wait here."

"If we're all in agreement," I began, "then I'll be going. Where is this place?"

"Wait," Xion spoke up. "If you're going, I'm going with you!" She looks really determined. "I won't sit on the sidelines!"

Leon simply smiled at us. "Okay," he said. "But you're not gonna hafta go very far. Tron is a computer program. You'll be heading into the computer." Well that's one of the most ridiculous things I've ever heard. "You guy's reallu up for it?"

I could feel the grin on my face growing. "Hell yeah," I replied. Then I looked at Xion. "Odds are I might get some combat out of this." Xion's eyes sort of widened, as if she got the message I was getting across.

"I'm in two," she said smiling.

Leon turned away from us and started typing on the computer. Afterwards a bright light shined behind us. Suddenly I felt like I'd just been shot in the back. Little by little, I started losing feeling in my body. After that, all I saw was blackness.

I soon found myself laying on some kinda of neon lit floor. When my vision started to unblur itself, I noticed something unusual about what I was wearing. It looked like my old full body suit, only it was covered in Neon lined red. I noticed something else, I was also wearing my old helmet. "Ugh, where am I?" I looked around the area to see what looked like a large city, covered in neon lighting. All the people surrounding the area were wearing neon lit clothing too.

"What the hell is with all the neon lights around this place?" Suddenly I noticed something. Xion's not here! I started looking around the entire area, but I couldn't see her. "Xion! Where are you?!" No answer.

"You there," I heard from behind me. I saw 5 people dressed in uniforms with orange neon. Each of them was wearing a helmet to mask their faces and carrying staffs, colored the same way. Perhaps they think I'm one of them. "Program, state your handle."

Did this guy just order me around? "Listen buddy," I responded aggressively. "I'm not a program, and the name's Vanitas!"

Before I knew it. He stuck that orange glow stick up to my neck. I could practically feel the lethal intense vibrations coming off of it. "Users will be eliminated," he said.

I didn't wait for him to make a move. I immediately summoned my keyblade for the fight. Next thing I knew I was being surrounded by all five of them. One went for a stab, I dodged to the left. Another slashed towards me and I blocked the deadly assault. Damn. I haven't been in a fight like this for so long. That fight with Leon was basically just a sparring match. But this here is a life or death battle. I promised myself that I'd never use my full fighting power ever again. I'm not sure I'll be able to keep in control.

They had me pretty much on the ropes. I'd lost my footing and fallen to the ground. I don't stand a chance against this many at once. Before they took their finally strike at me, a bright white disk came in and bounced off four of them. They were all destroyed on contact.

"Step away from the user," said a man in a pure white suit and similar helmet. Whoever this guy is, he saved my ass. "I warned you, this is your last chance." When the one with that weapon to my neck failed to comply, the white guy charged at him. He was apparently charging at him with a disk. It had the same kind of feel to it that the murder stick did. In now time at all, the guy in white had destroyed my oppressor. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah," I responded. "Thanks for that. It's been awhile since I was in an outnumbered fight. My name's Vanitas. And you are?"

His mask removed itself to reveal a young man who looked like he might be in his mid twenties. "My name is Tron." So this is Tron.

"Well it's nice to meet you. But I take it this isn't the I/O Tower?"

"No. When you were on your way in, someone interfered with your coordinates. They were trying to pull you to them, but the other person that was with you pushed you out of the way and took your place. And that person is the one causing this whole mess."

No.. That means Xion's been taken by them! And it's all my fault.

 **A/N: So Vanitas now has a guilt trip going for him, and Xion sacrificed herself for Vanitas. As always feel free to drop that review**


	10. Chapter 10

CHAPTER 10: XION

What happened to me? Last thing I remember is going through a stream of light with Vanitas. Next thing I knew, something was trying to pull him off coarse. I know I pushed him out of the way, but after that, nothing. I opened my eyes to find myself in a room covered with neon orange all over the place. The bed I was laying in felt kinda rough honestly.

"Well," said a deep voice, cutting the silence. "Glad to see you're okay." I looked over to my left to see an older man who looked like he might be in his late twenties or early thirties. He had two men in uniforms lined with orange neon. He on the other hand was covered in yellow neon. "How do you feel?"

Who is this guy? "Y-yes," I replied. "I'm fine. Where am I, and who are you?"

He simply smiled at me. "My name is Clu. I had you brought here."

Say what now?! He was the guy that tried to take Vanitas?! "Why," I demanded to know.

"Easy," he said. "I was trying to save you and your friend." When he realized that I was going to listen to what he had to say he continued. "I assume you were on your way to Tron. Unfortunately that is not advisable. You see his programming was altered and repurposed. So now he's gone over the edge and is trying to destroy the grid and remake it in his own image."

Could this really be true? I didn't know anything about this Tron guy, so maybe it really was possible. "What about Vanitas?! He's not here is he?"

Clu's face looked like he was disappointed. "Unfortunately I couldn't retrieve your friend from Tron. No doubt he's trying to manipulate him into working with him."

What should I do? Leon seemed to trust him, but if what this Clu guy said is true, then I need to find Vanitas and help him. "Thank you for telling me this. In that case, I'm gonna go search for him."

I started walking away until he put his hand on my shoulder. "There's no need for you to go yourself. My forces are already out searching for him."

"Then let me join him. If Tron's already convinced him to be on his side, then I should be able to talk to him and make him see the truth." Clu looked like he was considering allowing me to go on my self appointed mission.

"Very well. But, you'll need a uniform so my forces don't mistake you for a threat." Next thing I knew, four women, who looked like they might've been in their late twenties appeared from the outside. "These four will see to it that you're properly equipped with a uniform and your own identity disk."

After he left, it was definitely an unusual experience. They actually lasered my clothes off, and some kinda of new flexible, neon lit, suit just started to appear on me. The suit was mainly black with white lights on it. When I faced my back towards a nearby mirror and looked at the circle where my disk was placed around. I saw letters that spelled VIX. When I flipped that around in my head, I realized it was the Roman number for 14. When I asked them why that was there, they told me the suit reacts to one of the greatest significances to my existence. My number was 14 back in the organization where I met my two best friends.

"Well," I began, "how do I look."

"Efficient," Clu responded. Well I guess it's better than nothing. "Now, I just received word that your friend and Tron were seen together. Unfortunately it seems they're already working together. They de-rezzed five of my men. In a populated area as well."

What?! Vanitas actually attacked and killed people?! I can't believe he'd do something like that. This Tron guy has taken this too far. Tricking Vanitas like this is something I won't forgive. "I'll find them, and put an end to Tron's plans."

After Clu gave me the okay to go, they fitted me with a stick that apparently becomes a light cycle. I looked as the first set of Clu's guard unleashed theirs. I followed their leads and jumped onto my own. The speed of the bike felt incredible. Each one of us paired up with another and branched off into different directions.

Suddenly I heard a voice inside my helmet. "So, I never got your name," I heard Clu say over the radio.

"It's Xion," I replied, still enjoying the freedom of my new light cycle.

"Well Xion there's a place that I want you to check out. I think it might be Tron's hideout. If you find him there, don't de-rezz him. I can fix his code so that he turns into what he should be."

"You got it Clu. And I just wanna say thanks, you know, for helping me save Vanitas."

"Make sure you bring him back here too. I'd like to meet this friend of yours."

"Will do! Okay send me the location."

 **A/N: Oh wow Clu... How much lower could he get?! Sorry for the late update, hope you enjoyed. Drop that review below!**


	11. Chapter 11

CHAPTER 11: VANITAS

Tron and I kept walking for a while, with no interaction with anyone. "So," I spoke, "are we going to the I/O Tower?"

"No," he replied, "that was merely where I was supposed to meet you. It's not safe to be there right now." Wow this guy sure is talkative.

"I take it you're not usually this talkative?"

As expected, he didn't even turn to look at me. "Sorry. Ever since Clu began his takeover of the grid, I've changed a bit. If only Sora was here."

Oh for the love of- If someone compares me to Sora one more time I'll- Wait a minute. Tron doesn't know what I look like. "I've heard things about him, but not what he's like."

Tron just started chuckling a little bit. "Well, let's put it this way. Before I met him, all of my decisions were made with the use of logical outcomes. But I learned from him what it meant to follow your heart, and not just your mind." So that's what he's like in a few words. We were only a few feet away from turning a corner when Tron stopped. "We're in trouble."

I took a look around the corner to see 10 guards in front of what looked like an old building. But only 9 of them were men in the usual black uniform with orange neon. The tenth was a girl in black with white neon lighting. "I take it that's where we were supposed to go?"

"Unfortunately, yes. But it looks like Clu discovered my new hideout. And much of my equipment is in there. I need that stuff."

"Then why don't we take it back," I suggested as I summoned my Void Gear.

"Don't," he said holding me back. "That weapon must be why Clu tried to pull you away during your transportation. Sora had a weapon similar to your's."

So Clu wanted my Keyblade? But then he has one whether or not he got me. Xion has one too. "But this is all I got. What else am I supposed to fight with?"

Tron then proceeded to show me his disk. "Your disk of course. It's on your back." I turned to look at my reflection in the window. I DID have a disk on my back, with the symbol for my Unversed in the dead center. I guess it's only fitting that I be branded with the mark of monsters. "It can be used as a shield, close range weapon, or as a projectile."

"Well, I always was a fast learner when it came to weaponry." Tron left to circle around and get a better vantage point. Once he gives me the signal I'm gonna end up fighting them at close range. Good enough for me. I fight better in a close up fight anyway.

Before I knew it, all hell started to break loose. Tron's disk came in flying and I took my chance. The standard issue guy's went down easy, but the female was way better at dodging. Knowing this I charged at her, disk in hand. She pulled out her out disk and this turned into a pure all out death battle. While I wasn't able to make a solid contact hit, neither could she. Back and forth was straight up attack, block, and dodge. Until she tripped me up and I lost my footing. She landed a lucky shot on my helmet, which left a big crack in it.

"Oh what's wrong," she spoked with a digital sounding voice. "Did I hurt you?"

"Piece of advise brat," I replied. "Don't get cocky!" I launched a Dark Firaga at her. She managed to just barely dodge it. Guess she's a nimble brat. I kept launching more and more Dark Firagas, and she continued to dodge every shot. "Not bad for a Clu crony!"

"You're pretty skilled yourself, for a renegade lackey." 'LACKEY'?! Now she's in for it! Normally I wouldn't resort to using these in a personal fight, but she's gone and pissed me off now! I brought forth 3 of my Floods to help with the fight. "Couldn't get anything done without cheating huh?"

"You call it cheating, I call it strategy!" The unversed began to encircle her, causing her to drop her focus on me. My floods are common, and not very powerful, but they did what was needed. By the time she destroyed the last of them, the power had returned to me, and I managed to tackle her hard enough to knock away her disk. Now I had MY disk up against her neck. "I'd be careful if I were you. You wouldn't be the first person I put 6 feet under."

Before I knew it, Tron came out yelling, "Vanitas, stop! That's your friend!" Wait... WHAT DID HE JUST SAY?!

I turned my attention to the very person he was referring to. I removed the cracked helmet covering my face, to reveal my black spiky hair and yellow eyes. "Xion," I asked, hoping that I was wrong. Mainly because I just threatened to kill her. Suddenly her face visor pulled back, and my fears came to life. It was Xion. The worst part was that her face looked terrified, and she was crying. I got up off of her and tried my best to compose myself, but I could feel myself getting shakier by the second.

"V-Vanitas," she spoke quietly. "You really did kill people?"

"Xion," I began while reaching out my hand, "I-"

She didn't let me finish. She turned away and brought forth some kind of motorcycle, and sped away. I couldn't believe I said that to her. I may not have known her for more than three weeks, but she was still as close to having a friend as I've ever been. And now, I must look like a monster in her eyes. For all I know, I may have just lost the only friend I've ever had. Suddenly some of the last words I heard Ventus said to me, "At least I have friends." Is this why he was willing to fight so hard for them?

 **A/N: So the truth comes out, just not in the way Xion thinks. And now Vanitas is in deeply hot waters. As always, feel free to drop that review.**


	12. Chapter 12

CHAPTER 12: XION

Why?! How?! How could Vanitas be some kind of killer? Did Tron do this to him? No, that doesn't make any sense. He stopped Vanitas from killing me. So what does this mean? I can't just let Tron and Vanitas keep killing people, but from what I saw, taking either one of them down without killing one of them won't be easy. I'm not even sure I want to at this point.

"Xion," I heard, snapping me out of my spaced mode. I turned around to see Clu behind me, accompanied by two of his personal guards. "I heard that they escaped?"

"Yeah," I replied. "I'm sorry, I just lost my nerve."

Clu turned away from me, and looked out the window. "I see. Well, you should know something very important about me." He then turned his head towards one of his guards and nodded. The one he nodded to started heading over to me. "I don't allow failures." Next thing I knew the guard walking over to me pulled out a taser stick.

I let my instincts take over and managed to dodge it. "What the Hell Clu?!" He didn't even turn to answer me, but his crony was more than willing to keep charging at me, trying to hit me with that taser stick of his. But I was too fast for him. There was no way he was gonna hit me with that while I had my guard up. Suddenly it hit me. "You've been using me." This time he did turn to face me. "Why? What do you want?"

He opened his palm to reveal a holographic projection of someone who looked just like Vanitas, but with brown hair and blue eyes. Sora. "The weapon this boy is holding," replied Clu. "You see, when Tron removed the MCP from the Grid, he went around telling every program. And when he told me, he mentioned the story of how he and this boy, Sora, stopped him. What caught my attention more than anything was this 'KeyBlade' of his. What it can do. So I made a little ruckus, enough to cause enough reason for Tron to call on his friends. And when I caught the unique signature that Tron showed me during your arrival, I attempted to pull him towards me. Unfortunately, I didn't count on you pushing him out of the way."

That doesn't make any sense. I have a Keyblade, so it shouldn't have mattered which one of us he grabbed. Unless he didn't think I had one too. That's an advantage in my favor. "Why do you want the Keyblade? Does it have anything to due with this DTD thing?"

"Tron already figured that much out huh? I'm not surprised. He's always had a knack for gathering intel."

"Well don't expect to get it from him."

Clu just started laughing. "Oh, I'm sure he'll be more than willing to had it over to me. After all, I do have something, or someone he wants. You." Next thing I knew, I was tackled by more of Clu's men. "As I understand it, it has the power to lock, or unlock anything. A power that I intend to utilize to it's fullest potential."

I just started laughing myself. "You have no Idea how a Keyblade really works do you?" Clu looked way less than amused. "A Keyblade is a sentient being in and of itself. Not only does it only work for its wielder, it chooses it's wielder. So in other words, you have zero chance of ever getting your hands on a Keyblade, much less ever using one." I must've really got under Clu's skin with the cocky comments, because he straight up smacked me across the with an extremely painful amount of force. The only thing running through my mind at that point was one word. Ow. "Ha! Is this what you do when you don't get what you want? Just smack girls around?"

Clu looked like he would have killed me right then and there, but I knew he wouldn't. I'm his leverage. "Take her to the cells."

The whole way there I was completely compliant. I had no reason to attempt an escape. Once they put me in the cell and walk away. I'm gonna end up walking right out. As expected, once I was locked up, they walked away. "Heh, losers." Had to give it to them though. The security in this place is beyond extreme. But no matter how powerful the lock, there's nothing the Keyblade can't UN-lock. I raised up my hand to summon my Keyblade, but something went wrong. When the light began to appear, it just as quickly disappeared. My Keyblade refused to appear. Immediately I got feel my face going into a state of shock. "No... No! NO! NOOOO!" Not this again! My Keyblade! Lost again... But why?

Suddenly the answer hit me. Vanitas. It's the only thing that makes sense. He looks just like Sora, and he has a Keyblade. There's more than likely a connection. This means that if he comes into contact with me, what happened to Roxas, could happen to him too. For all I know, it's already started happening.

 **A/N : Ouch... Multiple blows to Xion. Both physical and psychological. As always feel free to drop that review.**


	13. Chapter 13

CHAPTER 13: VANITAS

"So what now," I asked Tron. "I don't think Xion's going to be willing to listen to me now. After all I just threatened her life." I don't think I could've felt any worse at this point.

"Right now Xion's probably in more trouble than we are," replied Tron. "Clu doesn't accept any failures. Most likely, he'll have her de-rezzed." Yeah, when Hell freezes over. If Clu so much as touches her, I'll turn him into a pretzel. "But if it's your Keyblade he wants, it's more than likely that he'll keep her locked up and use her as bait. That way he can draw you in."

"So... What's the plan?"

"Well, we need a way into the prison cells where she'll be held." Well brilliant Tron. Just one problem, we would need to figure out which jail and cell, as well as making sure we don't get caught trying to save her.

"I have an idea about how we can perform recon. Without risk of being detected." Tron just looked at me with pure interest. Then I summoned one of my floods. Tron practically jumped as high as Xion normally does when I shock her. "These are called Unversed. I can create them at will. This one in particular can meld itself into the ground. Perfect for a scout."

After that we headed to the prison closest to Clu's base. As my Flood worked it's way into the base, I made sure to memorize every last detail that I saw through it's eyes. Normally I don't use this kind of link because I can't move my own body while focusing my senses through an unversed. 'Come on Xion,' I thought to myself. 'Where are you?' I kept searching through every last cell. Some of them were filled with people shouting for any guard to let them out. Others I found were rocking back and forth in corners mubling, 'Not the games, not the games, not the games.' I actually found it kind of disturbing. I kept checking endlessly, but I couldn't find any trace of Xion.

As I got closer to the end of the cells, I came across a cell with the number 14 one it. For some reason, it felt like it was calling to me. I slid my Unversed self under the door to find a girl with neon clothing and black hair, crying her eyes out. I brought myself from my flattened form to a fully physical form. The girl clearly had no idea that I was nearby. Then all of a sudden she lifted her head to reveal her face. It was definitely Xion. Of course once she saw me like this, she started screaming. I tried to get her to calm down, but since my Unversed can't speak, I had to try calm her down by shaking my limbs like they were hands.

After about 3 minutes of trying to stop her deaf ear inducing, screaming, she finally calmed down. I simply sat myself down. As did she. "So," she began, "where did you come from?" Hellooooooo! DO I LOOK LIKE I HAVE A MOUTH?! I swear, sometimes she can be as dense as a rock. "You know, you're actually kinda cute." Then she started petting my head while smiling. Xion, I swear, if I could scream right now, you'd be the one going deaf. After breaking away from her treating me like a pet, I tried to get around to telling her who I was. "Are you trying to tell me something?" Obviously I nodded. I started swinging my arms up and down in a slashing motion. "You like to hammer things!"

Clearly I shook my head to tell her no. "Um... Sword slashing," she guessed again. Well, she's on the right track. After that I did something that I was sure would fill in another blank. I got into my usual fighting stance to let her know who I was. Her face immediately turned from curiosity, to slight shock. "Vanitas." I knew something like this might happen. After our last encounter, I wouldn't be surprised if she decided to yell at me. I turned my head away from her in shame. Did I really expect her to be happy to see me after what happened? What happened next shocked me more than anything. She actually picked my unversed form up, and actually hugged me.

"Vanitas," I heard her say as I felt tears running down her face. "It's not safe for you to be near me. If you get too close to me then-"

Next thing I knew, my consciousness had been tossed back into my own body. My Unversed self had been destroyed. "No," I said. "Tron, forget stealth. Xion's in trouble." I absolutely meant what I meant about forgetting stealth. Without a second's hesitation I summoned my biggest and most powerful unveresed. My Trinity Armor. As I jumped on it's back, we flew straight towards the prison at full speed. As it smashed through the walls, I saw Xion being dragged out of her cell by three guards. I called out my Void Gear, and grabbed my Identity Disk, then charged at them. I knew no limit to my anger at that point. "Get away from her," I shouted in absolute rage. I slashed at the first one with my keyblade, and attacked the second with the disk. The third one looked like he wanted to bolt for the exit. I simply stood there with anger and hatred filling my eyes. If looks could kill, I'm pretty sure I would've just committed murder. "Listen to me. You're gonna go back to Clu, and tell him that if he comes within 100 miles of me or Xion, I'll make him wish he had never come out of hiding."

I could feel the anger within me reaching beyond anything I had ever felt before. Suddenly I felt a hand touch mine gently. "Vanitas," I heard Xion say. "Let's just go."

"What," Tron said appearing through the hole in the wall, "you didn't save any for me?"

I saw that he was trying to cheer up the mood. But the tension between me and Xion was beyond anything Tron could do. "So where do we go from here Tron," I asked.

"Well right now, since you let one of Clu's guards go to relieve a message, I suggest we head to the only safe place left."

I used the Trinity Armor to take us to what Tron called, a Solar Sailer. The entire ride there was silent. My Unversed wasn't exactly the fasted mode of transportation, so it was a long flight.

Once we finally found the sailer, we boarded it and headed straight for the edge of the city. Tron said we were supposed to be heading to a secure, off-grid location. Xion separated herself from me and Tron. I felt like I needed to tell her everything now.

I passed by the numerous amounts of cargo on the sailer, and found her at the very front. "Xion," I spoke to announce my presence. "I haven't exactly told you everything." She didn't turn to face me. I couldn't blame her. "During my time before I was in the Dark Realm, I worked for a man named Xehanort, which you already know. But what I didn't tell you was what I did for him. When I started, I was a more or less mindless slave. I did what he said without hesitation. Including killing people." The first thing I noticed in her reaction, was that her shoulders tensed up. I wanted to stop, but if I didn't want to lose her, then I needed to be honest with her. "At first, I didn't care what I was doing, but as time went by, I started to realize what I was becoming. After a while, I didn't need to be told to kill. You wanna know what the most twisted part of it all was? I actually enjoyed it. And ten years ago, I finally got what I deserved. When Xehanort ordered me to fight my original self, Ventus, he destroyed me, and ended up sending me to the dark realm. I could have tried to escape, but after so long, I realized it was the Hell where I belonged."

She still didn't turn to face me. "Why is that," she asked.

"Because I would be alone forever. Or so I thought. First there was Mortem. He tried to escape, but you know that didn't work. That's when I realized that I would die if I tried to escape. I know there's only one place I would've gone, and there, there are people to be around. I figured the only way I could punish myself for what I had done, was to completely isolate myself for the rest of my life. Until I met you."

Xion still wouldn't turn to face me. "Vanitas," she spoke up, "I know what it's like to be in a situation like your's. When I was created, it was for the intention of taking my friend's powers, and then destroying him. Right before I was destroyed, I tried to kill him." Xion. I didn't realize that she's so similar to me, but unlike her, for so long I enjoyed it. "I weakened him so much, and now I think the same thing is happening to you. I think I'm stealing your powers, just like when I stoll Roxas's. When I tried to call my Keyblade before, it didn't work. When I separated myself from him the first time, I lost my power. When I got close to him again, well I guess you know what happened."

Xion, how can she carry a burden like that? "That's a load of crap," I loudly stated. This immediately made her turn and face me. I could see the tears falling from her eyes, and the surprised look on her face. This was definitely a bold and risky move I was making. "Ever since I've met you, every time I'm near you, I feel stronger than ever!"

"Vanitas," she said in astonishment.

"Look," I said sitting down next to her. "I'm not asking you to forgive me for everything I've done. I just wanted you to know who I am."

"You mean who you were." Now I felt my face go into immediate surprise. "Vanitas, you forced yourself into a prison of your own making. You've clearly changed in all that time." When she said that, I turned to see her giving me a soft smile. "You risked your life for me, and helped me when you found me on that beach. You're clearly not the monster you claim you used to be anymore." She put her hand up to my face, and I could feel the warmth coming from her. I didn't want to say anything. From what I could tell, neither did she. Just like before, our faces got closer, and closer to each other. Just like last time, the closer we got, the more our eyes closed. Only this time I could tell that nothing was going to interrupt us again. And I was right. Our lips had made full contact. I knew what this was. A kiss. I'd never experienced something like this before. And for the first time in my life, I wasn't happy because I was hurting someone, but because I finally had someone worth being happy with.

 **A/N: Haha! You probably thought I'd save them finally getting together until the end, or near end. Nah, it's been done way to many times. I wanted to upload this yesterday on the 13th... Seemed appropriate. And a slight personal thumbs up for the longest chapter so far! But anyways, as always feel free to drop that review.**


	14. Chapter 14

CHAPTER 14: XION

I don't know what came over me. After Vanitas told me everything, my emotions went into some sort of overdrive. As the kiss went on, the only thing going through my mind was that I didn't want this moment to end. As we finally pulled ourselves away from each other, I felt the urge to kiss him again. Which I probably would have if I hadn't been hit with the urge to start laughing. I knew my face wold be red, but his was practically blood red. Not to mention that his eyes were wider than mine were. I looked down to his left arm to see that he was pinching it. "Vanitas," I spoke, "why are you pinching your arm?"

"I'm making sure this isn't a dream," he answered with a soft smile. I couldn't help myself after such a comment. I wrapped my arms around him, and he returned the act by embracing me as well. "Please for the love of Kingdom Hearts, don't let this be a dream."

"Well," said Tron announcing his presence, "you two look like you're doing much better." Vanitas turned his attention to Tron with a scowl. I almost burst out laughing right there.

"Yeah," I replied happily. "Vani and I are doing just fine!" Next thing I knew, Vanitas turned his scowl on me. Guess he doesn't like his new nickname.

"I'd appreciate it if you didn't call me that," he told me. Too bad Vani. You and that name are stuck together so long as I'm around!

"Well it's good that you two are on good terms again," said Tron. "But right now we need to have a serious talk." Oh yay. After being used as a pawn by Clu, escaping his prison, having an intense confession from Vani and I, then the two of us finally having a great moment, a serious talk. What more could a girl want after all that? "When we get to my safe house, you two are going to use the terminal there, and get outta here."

Vanitas immediately stood up to face him. "What?! There's no way we can leave you here!"

"Yeah," I added. "If Clu manages to access this DTD thing, then who knows what'll happen?" Besides, I have a massive score to settle with Clu right now.

"Listen you two," Tron continued. "What Clu wants is Vanitas's Keyblade. Once you're both off the Grid, he'll have to resort to the next best thing. Chasing me."

"That's exactly why we should stay," Vanitas argued. "It won't matter if we leave or not! He'll just hunt you down instead!"

"But it won't matter," Tron replied. He then pulled out his Identity disk, and turned it so that it was in two halves. The one in his left hand was white, and the one in his right was black. He then held up the black one. "This half of my Identity Disk holds all my memories, except for the ones regarding the DTD." Next he held up the white one. "This one contains every last bit of data regarding the DTD." He then held it out to Vanitas.

"Why are you giving this to me," he asked.

"Because I trust you," Tron answered. "The DTD needs to be kept out of his hands at all costs. There are extremely powerful programs and codes in the DTD. For example, there's an emergency self-destruct override for the user town." SAY WHAT?! The town has a self destruct?! "And another is a set of highly encrypted codes that can be used to bring anything from this world into yours."

I understand why Clu wants those codes. When he betrayed me, I saw a look I once saw in Xemnas's eyes. The desire to conquer. "Clu doesn't want to destroy the user world," I guessed. "He wants to take it over."

"Yes," Tron answered.

"Wait," interrupted Vanitas. "If there's a program that can take anything from this world and bring it into the real world, why don't you just use it and escape?" That's not a bad idea actually.

"Vanitas has a point Tron. You have the key to escape, so why not use it?"

"Because, even though Clu's doing everything he can to take over, I still believe there's a chance that I can save this place," Tron explained. His face looked like he wanted to go, but I understood what he meant. "Anyway, once you attach this white disk to your Identity Disk, all the information it carries will be instantly transmitted into your collective memory banks. But just so you know, you're gonna wanna change the password to the DTD. I didn't exactly remove it from my normal set of collective memories."

"Huh, why," I asked.

"Because, the new password was inspired by my friends. And don't ever want to forget them." Enough said Tron. I know all too well what that feels like. I couldn't bear to forget anything about my friends either. Roxas, Axel, Namine, Riku, and of course Vanitas. Well I guess Vani just became a little more than just a friend. "So that's why I want you to take this data. I know it'll be in good hands. I gotta ask. Will you protect the data."

"Yes," Vanitas complied taking the disk. "So how much longer until we get there?"

"At our current pace, I'd say we'll be there in just a little under an hour. For now I'm gonna go and check the perimeter."

As Tron started to leave, an eerie silence fell on Vanitas. "Wait," he said. "Why me? Why are you trusting me with this?"

Tron turned to face him and chuckled. "I bet you've heard this from quite a number of people, but you remind me of someone I know. His name is Sora." Instantly Vanitas's face turned into a small irritated look. He really must hate being compared all the time to someone he doesn't even know. "Your resemblance to him is already uncanny, but wielding a Keyblade, well it's quite the coincidence. But there's definitely a difference between you two. Sora is naive and a little too trusting. Honestly I wouldn't be surprised if it got him into trouble one day. He absolutely refuses to use sound logic. Instead he does whatever his heart tells him to. You on the other hand, I'm sure you can follow sound logic up to a point. When Xion was in trouble, all sound reason left you and you charged in there without a seconds hesitation. Sora has a strong heart but, when it comes down to life or death decisions on the spot, I think you may just have him beat. After all I've never seen someone with a heart like yours."

I knew what Tron said was meant in all good intentions, but Vanitas told me himself that he didn't have a heart. Physical or otherwise. I turned my attention to Vanitas and he was actually giving him a half-hearted smile. "Thanks," he said. "But listen, I'm not leaving for good. We'll come back with a plan. That's a promise." Tron simply nodded and continued his walk away. I guess Vanitas didn't really get many compliments working for Xehanort. Or maybe it was that Tron acknowledged that he has a heart. I don't know.

"Hey Vanitas," I spoke up. "Um... So, do you like me?" I know, not exactly the best time but I guess a part of me just has to know. What came next was something I didn't expect. Instead of answering me, he decided to bop me on the head. "Ow! What was that for?"

"For asking me such a stupid question!" Oh, I guess that makes since. I did just sorta kiss him right out of no where, without any warning. I wouldn't be surprised if he didn't like me after all. "In fact, every time you ask me a question that you should know the answer to, I'm gonna hit your head again! I mean think about it! Why in the Hell would I go through so much trouble, and put my life on the line for someone I didn't like?" What? "Seriously, sometimes you can be such a clueless brat." Vanitas had his eyes closed for pretty much this entire mini-rant. I knew what he was doing. He's being nice by being mean.

I ended up laughing a little, which made him smile. I liked the way he smiled actually. It was like he himself was the light in the darkness. "Well I may be a brat, but you're an arrogant punk whi just rushes in without thinking. Seriously, if that had been a real battle back there, it would've been me bailing you out."

He just laughed at my retort. "Probably," he said as he sat next to me. "But, I guess that's the part of me that can't be helped." I leaned in next to him, placing my head on his shoulder. "No matter what happens, I'll always protect you, Xion."

I just chuckled at his statement. "Hey, I'm a big girl. Trust me, when push comes to shove, I can handle myself pretty well." Still, it was really sweet of him to say that. "Hey why don't we get some sleep? If we run into more enemies, we'll need our rest."

"You sleep," he said. "I'm feeling just fine." With that he leaned in for a quick kiss. It felt inviting, but my head knew it needed the rest. As I closed my eyes, I drifted off into a peaceful bliss. Next thing I knew, I'm being shaken. "Come on Xion," I heard Vanitas say. "Wake up!"

"Can't I get some sleep here," I complained, rubbing my eyes. I looked out into the distance to realize we were almost at the end of the line. But unfortunately we had something waiting for us. At the end of the line I saw three ships that looked like arch ways, all line with orange neon lighting. Clu's forces beat us to the end. "You gotta be kidding me."

"Don't forget Xion," said Vanitas. "I'm right here. No one's gonna hurt you."

I get that he's trying to keep me out of danger, but there's no way I'm sitting this one out. I reached for my Identity Disk, but stopped myself. I didn't feel right using a weapon that I'm not familiar with. Suddenly I realized that I was feeling a new power flowing through me. It wasn't like when I took powers from Roxas, but so much stronger. With my left hand, I took Vanitas's right. What I felt, I knew was coming from him. I raised my right hand and once more, tried to summon my Keyblade. The light appeared in my hand, and I could feel the weight of a Keyblade. When the light faded, I noticed that the Keyblade had changed shape entirely. It resembled the very weapon she used against Roxas in Twilight Town when she turned into a gigantic form of herself. A gold and pink mixed guard, with a red handle, and a long silver blade that resembled the top of the nobody insignia, with a pink cover on the blade.

"Xion," Vanitas said in astonishment. "What happened to your Keyblade?"

I was wondering that myself. The answer was simple though. "This Keyblade resembles me. When I change, it changes with me." And it's name will resemble my last change, Final Phase. I looked to the enemy ships as we closed in on them. I let go of Vanitas's hand and charged at one of them. It then proceeded to fire at me, but it was useless. I raised my keyblade and used a Reflect spell on the solar sailor. The attacks not onlt bounced back to them, but ended up adding an attack powerful enough to destroy the ship in the middle. I turned my attention to the ship on the left. One of its windows was shattered. That's where I'm going.

I looked to my right to see Vanitas's monsters heading for the ship on the right. I then looked behind me to see both Vanitas and Tron following me with both their helmets on. Probably a good idea to protect my head too. The jump from the sailor to the ship was something else. The sailor was already going at high speeds. Add that with the fact that technically I was running faster, then second I went through the window I ended up knocking over two guards at once. Tron, Vanitas, and I were unstoppable. I didn't fully understand what Vanitas meant when he talked about being in combat, but now I do. He was putting his pat behind him when he fought, and now so was I.

By the time reality had snapped back into me, the fight was over. A part of me felt guilt for what I'd done. I've never killed anyone before. I looked at Vanitas and noticed there was a piece of his helmet broken off. Just enough to see his eye. From what I could tell, he wasn't too pleased with himself either. Did I want to kill them? No. Did I ever want to get into a situation where I'd have to kill again? Hell no. But was I willing to it if it meant that I could protect Vanitas? Absolutely!

"Well," spoke Tron, interrupting my moment of revelation. "It looks like you two have some very good combat experience. Have you two been a team for very long?"

"Actually," Vanitas began, "this is the first time she and I have fought together like this." I couldn't see his face, but I knew he was smiling at me. Call it a sort of sixth sense.

"Well," continued Tron, "it looks like your unversed friends finished off the other ship."

"How do you know that," I asked.

"Because it blew up." Don't know why I bothered asking. If Vanitas is involved, chaos is bound to follow. "This actually works in our favor, with this ship we'll be there in minutes."

Just like Tron said, minutes. We arrived so quickly that Vani and I didn't really get any alone time. As we walked through the front door, I felt a sense of familiarity. The place reminded me of the grey room, or longue, from the Organization's castle. The only real difference was that there was a terminal in the corner, and the room was covered in white neon lighting. "This will be your way out," announced Tron, pointing at the terminal. "You'd better get going. But first you should attach the DTD data to your Identity Disk. Be careful though. Your mind will have to be able to process everything that disk has to offer. For a program it isn't a problem. But you're a user, and that could have some painful side effects."

Vanitas just smirked at him. "Trust me, if there's one thing I know, it's how to handle pain," he gloated. Vanitas then did as Tron instructed, and proceeded to put his disk back on. At first nothing happened, but then... "AAAAHHHHHHH!"

"VANITAS," I screamed running over to him. "Are you okay?!" Vanitas kept holding his head like it threatened to explode. I held him tight, trying to keep him calm and help stop his shaking. As quickly as his pain started, it very soon ended. "Vanitas, are you okay?"

"Yeah," he answered, easing my worry. He then turns his attention towards Tron with an irritated smirk. "If we weren't friends, I would've totally kicked your ass just now."

Suddenly our moment of peace was ruined by a loud boom. "What's happening," I screamed.

Tron ran over to the terminal and pulled up a live feed of the entrance. "They've found us," he said. "Listen, you two need to go now! I've set up the device to take your back to the user town. Go. I'll buy you some time." Before Vanitas and I could say anything, he was already gone.

We headed over to the terminal and pushed to button Tron had highlighted for us. After which, a guard came busting through the door and charged at us. But he was too late. The next thing I knew, we were back in Radiant Garden, in the computer room. I went over to the ledge and looked down to see Leon walking around, clearly waiting for an attack.

When I turned back around, I saw Vanitas on the computer. "What are you doing," I asked.

"Remember what Tron asked us to do. He told us to change the password. It WAS Sora Donald Goofy. But I just changed it to something else." I looked on the screen to see what it was, but all I saw was [PASSWORD CHANGED TO : ***** *********].

"What is the new password?"

"TRON'S SACRIFICE."

 **A/N: TROOOOON! Thanks to all for reading again! Be sure to drop that review! =D**


	15. Chapter 15

CHAPTER 15: VANITAS

So much has happened in a few matter of hours. I could still feel all the data Tron gave me rushing through me. I had to keep my focus, or else I was gonna end up passing out from the pain. "Tron," I called through the moniter. "Can you hear me? Tron!" I couldn't hear anything from the other end but static. "C'mon you digital pain, answer me."

"H-lo," the monitor spoke. "Hello? Can you hear me?"

There was no mistaking that voice. It was definitely Tron. "Tron, I hear you," I replied with a smile on my face. "When that guard came running into the safe house, I thought they got you."

"No. He just slipped past me. I'm okay. How are you and Xion?"

"We're fine. We made it back okay. Listen, until we get a plan in motion, we need you to lay low. We'll be back soon."

"No, you won't." Wait. What is he talking about? "I appreciate all you've done, but this is where we part ways. I'm cutting the access channel that keeps our two worlds connected. This way there's no chance that Clu will ever be able to access the DTD."

"Tron, you can't be serious!"

"Goodbye."

After that, the communication link went dead. I couldn't believe it. After everything we've been through, he thinks I'm just gonna leave him? Like Hell. "So," I heard Xion say, "now what?"

"I-I don't know." I felt so frustrated. I only ever failed one mission when I worked for Xehanort, a failure which landed me in the Dark Realm. I felt angry for my failure back then, but this was something else. "This isn't over. We're gonna come up with a plan and get back in there, like I promised."

I turned to face Xion, and noticed her giving me a reassuring smile. Something I noticed was that she was wearing the same clothes she had before we went into the grid. I looked down to see that the grid version of my full body suit was gone too. "Until we figure something out, maybe we should take a break," suggested Xion. "Maybe even get ourselves some clothes that aren't ripped up?" I took a look at my own clothes and let out a small laugh. Xion was exactly who I needed to put me in a better mood. "Don't worry about Tron. He's way too tough to be brought down so easily."

"Xion has a point," said Leon, exiting out of the elevator. He looked like he'd been through Hell and back. He had a few bruises and cuts, but otherwise, he looked like they had no effect on him. "Tron's one tough program. He'll be fine. In the meantime though, you two should seriously consider getting yourselves some new clothes. The ones you're wearing now look like they've seen some serious mileage."

I guess if both Xion and Leon are saying it, it must be true. "Have any recommendations," I asked. After that Leon took us back into town. For a moment, things almost didn't feel right. I'd been in the Grid so long, I actually expected to see neon lights on top of everything. "So Leon, does this guy you're taking us to do custom jobs?"

"Yep," he replied. "And she's not a guy. In fact she has a sort of special brand of clothing. I'm talking tear proof, fire proof, and a lot of others. The girl's a genius. In fact she made the clothes I'm wearing now. Notice how I don'thave so much as a scratch on them?" He had a point. In fact I hadn't even noticed that his clothes were still in one piece. That actually impressed me a little. "Okay, we're here." I looked up to the sign of the shop. It said 'RADIANT KINGDOM'. Intersting name for a clothing shop. "If you're looking for a custom job, then I should warn you, he's not cheap. I could loan you some munny if you'd like."

Xion and I just grinned at each other. She couldn't help but start giggling. I on the other hand, was laughing. "Don't worry about that Leon," I said. "I'm not exactly hurting for munny." When I told Leon about how much munny I actually had, he nearly fainted. "Don't worry, once we're done, we'll head back to the castle to work on our grid problem."

Leon just shook his head. "No. Tron cut the link between the two worlds. I have a friend, Cid, who can repair it, but he said it'll take some time. Here," he said, holding out a piece of paper. "That's the address where you can find me. If you run into a man named Merlin, and not me, don't call him old. Cid found out the hard way."

After he left we walked into the shop. I was astounded actually. The place looked small on the outside, but that's because it didn't have higher levels. The levels actually descended. "Ah," said a woman's voice. I turned aroun to see a young girl, around maybe 21, with long black hair, and green eyes. "How lovely! Such a cute couple you two make! Let me guess, you're here to get a wedding dress and tux?" Instantly I could feel my face going red. I dared not look at Xion. It felt too awkward. And I knew that if the sudden comment hit me like this, then Xion must be on the verge of passing out from the excitement. "Hm... Judging by your reactions to my guess, it looks like I was wrong. But I still think you two look soooooooo cute together!" For the love of Kingdom Hearts, does she just shout out everything that pops into her head?! "Oh, where are my manners?" Clearly you threw them out the window. "My name is Christy. And it's my pleasure to help you find the best clothes you can find!"

Xion seemed to find this Christy girl amusing. I on the other hand, find her to be too loud and obnoxious. "Well actually," Xion spoke, "we're looking to get some custom made clothes. A friend of ours recommended you. Leon."

Instantly, Christy's eyes lit up like stars. "Leon! Is he here?!"

"No," I answered. "He had some business to take care of."

Her happy face turned into a state of disappointment... For a brief half second. "Oh well! So what kind of customs did you have in mind?"

"Well," I began. "I was thinking some material like was you gave Leon. You know. The non-tearing variety." She nodded her head and kept her attention on me. "Some black jeans, a red T-shirt, and a black zip-up hoodie." I decided to keep it basic.

"What about shoes," she asked. "The ones you're wearing now seem to be a little run down."

She was right. They looked like they were gonna fall apart at any moment. "Yeah, that'd b great." I gave her a somewhat stupid grin. If I'm gonna change, then I gotta start somewhere. Christy then proceeded to write down on a notebook, what I assumed was, my simple instructions. But when she flipped over the notebook, I saw something else. It was a drawing of me, in the clothes I specified. She looked at me as if she was waiting for an answer. "Yeah, that's basically it." Normally I would leave it alone after that, but I wanted to make one last addition. "Can I see that for a second?" She politely handed me the book and pen. I started drawing something that I saw as a new beginning for me. I drew the unversed symbol. "Can you put this on the front of the shirt in black, as well as on the back of the hoodie, but in red?"

She smiled and nodded at me. "Of course! Adding a unique symbol like this makes it your's! There's just one problem though. My customs aren't cheap."

"Don't worry. I've got more than enough munny to pay for whatever price you throw at me."

"The shirt alone will be 2,000 munny."

"That's it? I'll have no problems then!"

She then shrugged as if I was the person she tried to warn but wouldn't listen. "And you," she asked, looking at Xion.

"Um," Xion tried to respond. "Well, to be honest, the only things I've ever actually worn are these clothes I have now, and a black cloak."

Christy looked horrified. As if she had her heart ripped out. Then she turned her attention to me with an ashamed glare. "As her boyfriend, how could you possibly let her walk around in these, and not get her something much nicer?!"

"No, it's not his fault," Xion defended. "To be honest, we only had our first kiss a few hours ago. So we just got together!"

Christy's glare then turned back into a gushing ray of happiness and joy. I could practically taste what little food I had in my stomach trying to crawl its way up my throat. "So you're going to pay for your clothes _and_ hers?" I simply nodded. I knew Xion didn't have any money, and I had more than enough to pay for whatever she was going to get. "Oh he's so sweet! I wish I had a boyfriend willing to do something like that for me. Even after hearing the price for just the shirt, he still wants to pay for you!" If she gets any louder, I may kill her. "Oh, silly me, I forgot to ask your names, so that I can apply them to your custom clothes! What are your names?"

"I'm Vanitas Void."

"Wow," Christy replied. "That's quite an interesting name."

"I'm Xion."

Christy kept looking at Xion as if she was waiting for her to continue. "And your last name?"

"Oh, right," Xion replied. She looked stumped. As far as I knew, she didn't have a last name. That Organization XIII must not have given her one. "Strife! Xion Strife!"

"Wait," said Christy. "Your last name is Strife?" Xion simply nodded. "Wow! You don't look anything like Cloud! Are you his daughter?"

"N-No, Xion stuttered. "We just happen to have the same last name. There's no relation between him and me." Smooth Xion. Way to stutter.

"Well Xion why don't you take a look around, find something you like, that inspires your imagination? Then I'll get to work on your custom design!"

After Xion walked off to browse, I was left alone with Christy. "So," I began, "this special material that you use to make these clothes nearly indestructible, what is it?"

"Oh, it's called Orichalcum Silk. Made from real Orichalcums!"

"What?! Orichalcum's are nearly impossible to get ahold of!"

"Not for me," she winked. "Oh, and it's not really silk. That's just the name I came up with. Sounds better than Orichalcum cotton, or wool, or whatever."

"Well, how long do you think it will take you to make the clothes?"

"Well, yours is fairly simple. Add the strange symbol into the mix, I'd say half an hour."

"What? There's no way you could make that in half an hour." I should know how difficult it is to make clothes. Hell, I taught myself for the last 10 years.

"Is that a challenge?" I saw the look in her eyes that just made it beyond obvious that she wanted me to issue a challenge. No way! I'm not playing this game. So I shook my head to tell her no. "That's no fun! Oh well. I guess I shouldn't make you bet on something that I know you'd lose at." Xion would forgive me if I killed her right? Right? Bad idea. Got it. "Anyway, you can go wait in my office over there. I'll go find Xion and figure out what she'd like."

After about 10 minutes she brought Xion to me and told us that combined, our customs were going to take only an hour. Yeah right. Only an hour. There's no freaking way. But sure enough, she stuck by her word, and had them both done in an hour.

"Well," I heard her saying on the other side of the dressing room door. "How's it fit?"

Surprisingly well. She didn't even need to take my measurements. She must be some kind of expert. "It fits great," I answered. I practically jumped out of my skin when I heard her squeal out of excitement. I took a look at myself in the mirror, and almost didn't recognize myself. For the first time, I looked like a regular 15 year old. Actually now that I think about it, I was created around 15 years ago, so I guess for once, I look my own age.

As I walked out, my ears were attacked by the squeal of the craziest tailor I'd ever met. "It looks even better on you than I thought it would! Oh, and this is on the house." She reached out her closed hand, and drop a pendant in mine. It was a necklace, shaped like the Unversed symbol. My jaw was literally wide open. "The symbol you wanted me to add to the shirt and hood sparked my imagination. I had my 3D printer work it's magic while I was making your clothes."

"Thanks," I smiled softly. It was weird. I thought of the Unversed as just monsters at first, but now, I know they're more than just a tool for destruction. And I'll prove it by showing this symbol wherever I go. "Hey Xion. You almost done?"

"Y-Yeah," she replied. "Just give me a second." She then stepped out from the changing room, and I could feel my eyes getting huge. She was wearing a black T-shirt with a purple 14 on the left sleeve, and a hood attached. Underneath the T was a long sleeved purple shirt, and she was wearing black skinny jeans, and black combat boots. "Well, what do you think?"

In all honesty, I wanted nothing more than to marvel in her beauty. The clothes looked so common, but on her, it felt so much different. "W-Well," I began stuttering. "You uh... I-I mean you look really... great." What the Hell is wrong with me? I'm actually stuttering! But part of me didn't care. I felt like I could be a little more lax around her, so I let a stupid grin spread across my face. "Seriously, that's a great look for you!"

"Thanks," she replied with a big smile.

"Oooooooohh," Christy squealed. "You two are sooooo adorable!" Happy place Vanitas. Happy place. "I feel kinda bad for charging you guys so much after you just got together."

"It's no big deal," I told her. "What do I owe you?"

"Well... since you asked for pretty much everything for a unique outfit, the price for the two of them together is 30,000 munny."

"Okay," I said as I pulled out my Radiant Garden munny card. She looked at me like I was crazy. "Trust me, I can afford it. And even _if_ you offered to allow us to leave without paying, Xion will just give me an evil glare that'll make me com back and pay anyway."

I didn't even need to look at Xion to know she was giving me an evil smirk. "Thank you so much Christy," Xion spoke.

"No problem! Hey listen. If you guys ever want more clothes, come on by, and I'll give you a special discount!"

"You got it," I said. We said our goodbyes and headed out. Next thing I knew, my stomach felt like it was trying to eat me from the inside out. "Hey, how 'bout we get some food? And I mean more than just Ice Cream." She nodded to me, signifying that I was finally gonna get some real food. We walked through the crowds in the street, looking for a good restaurant. Suddenly, I had a bad feeling running down my spine. I focused my senses, and noticed something. We were being followed. But by who? Let's see. Two people, both males. One of their scents was familiar. Suddenly it hit me. I didn't know who the second person was, but there was absolutely no doubt in my mind as to who the one I recognized was.

Braig!

 **A/N: Oh no... Run Vanitas! Anyway, sorry for taking so long! BTW Christy is just an OC for comedy, so I wouldn't expect to see her again, at least for a while. Anyway thanks for reading, and feel free to drop that review! XD**


	16. Chapter 16

CHAPTER 16: XION

The clothes felt incredible. You would never guess that they were some kind of armor. I looked at Vanitas curiously. He looked a little spooked actually. "Vanitas," I spoke, catching his attention. "Are you okay?"

"Xion, take my arm," he said. I complied getting close to him, like we were an everyday couple. "Listen to me. Don't speak too loud, and whatever you do, DO NOT turn around. We're being followed." The words instantly stabbed fear into me. Without even thinking about it my head started to turn. Luckily, Vanitas stopped me. "I said don't look!"

"Do you know who's following us?"

"Yeah. One of them. His name is Braig. He worked for Xehanort, like I did."

"What do we do? Do we fight him?"

"No. We're in a public place. He won't attack us in public and risk drawing in attention. Not if he's still working for Xehanort. Besides, we need to get something to eat in order to have enough strength to fight."

"So what do we do?"

"See that ally coming up on our left?" I looked ahead to see exactly what he was talking about. "When we get there, we're going to make a run for it. We can't slow down or even look back." We kept getting closer and closer. I wanted so bad to turn and see who this "Braig" was, but I trusted Vanitas. Almost there. "Now."

We turned down the ally and started running. I wasn't familiar with the layout of this world, but Vanitas must've known where we were going. The ally was a long one, covered with boxes and trash dumpsters all over the place. It was easy to maneuver my way through this place. I could turn and weave my way through like the wind. Vanitas on the other hand was maneuvering even more. It was almost like he learned to master parkour in a matter of seconds. I followed his instructions to the letter. I didn't slow down or look back. Suddenly I found myself hitting the ground.

I had been moving so fast that I had managed to trip myself on a broken pipe. "AH," I screamed as the pain rushed through me. Suddenly I felt myself being picked up. Vanitas had managed to turn back and pick me up so fast that we were already moving again. He was much stronger than he looked.

Suddenly something went flying by his head. I recognized it. It was a shot from one of Xigbar's guns! If this Braig guy is the one Vanitas knows, then the other must be Xigbar! I looked over his shoulder to see the two men chasing us. My horror had been realized. They were both in black coats, with their hoods up. In the right hand of one of them was definitely Xigbar's gun. "Hang on," I heard Vanitas say. Suddenly we were jumping over a fence. As I looked back, I saw a shot heading straight towards Vanitas. I wanted to warn him, but it was too late. It hit his back, but it simply shattered against his clothing. "AH! DAMMIT THAT HURT!" Okay, so it didn't stop pain from hitting him, but at least he wasn't hurt too badly.

"Vanitas, they're catching up!"

"Not for long!" We reached the end of the ally and turned right. There was a huge crowd for us to hide in. But it wouldn't matter. They'd find us, one way or another. Instead of going into the crowd, Vanitas jumped through a window with me still in his arms. Luckily the window was open. He set me down under the window, and closed the slightly broken window. He got down next to me and held me close. "Keep quiet," he whispered.

"Ah, where'd they go," I heard Xigbar complain on the other side of the window. "Guess they must've used a dark corridor to escape." He had no idea that we were less than ten feet from him. "So, what now?"

"We should head back," the other man answered. It was strange. I recognized this voice too. It had a sort of antagonizing feel to it. "That shot should have at least slowed him down. But if he's gone to another world, then he'll be practically impossible to find. Let's return to Lord Xemnas." Wait! The way he's talking! There's no mistaking it! Saix!

"Don't forget that he's not our leader anymore," Xigbar commented. "Xehanort's our head honcho now." Wait, Xehanort? I turned my gaze to Vanitas to find his face stuck in a mixed state of horror and anger. "Anyway, you're right. Let's go."

I had then noticed that my hand was resting on his chest. It suddenly hit me. The look on his face suggested a heightened state of fear. One that should've made his heart beat race like a freaking train. But I didn't feel a thing. "They're gone," he said, calming down.

"Vanitas," I spoke. "I knew both of those men. The one with that deep voice we just heard, his name is Saix. He was the Organization's number VII. And the one who shot you-"

"Braig," he interrupted. I looked at his face again to see that it had turned from fear, to anger. "That bastard never had a problem with shooting someone in the back." Wait. Was he talking about Xigbar? Does he know him as Braig?

"The name he goes by is Xigbar," I informed. "He was number II in the organization. And the portrait we saw in Ansem's room, that was actually Xemnas. He's the Organization's leader."

"There's more to it than that," he said. "That man in the picture, was Xehanort." THAT was Xehanort?! "Well, technically it was, and wasn't, Xehanort. The man in that picture is named Terra. He's one of the Keybladers I fought before entering the dark realm. Xehanort had a plan, to possess Terra in order to have a body strong enough to help him survive his plan. Recreating the Keyblade War. Terra had brown hair and blue eyes. Not silver hair and yellow eyes."

I wasn't sure what to say. "That could just be a coincidence."

"No. He had a back up plan in case I failed at recreating the weapon he needed. The X-BLADE. To create 13 dark vessels, each with a piece of his heart in them."

"That still doesn't mean he got to this Terra person."

"Yellow eyes are a distinct trait to Xehanort." Wait. But Vanitas has... "I can see it on your face. It's true. I'm connected to him too. No matter how small, a piece of that sick old man is a part of me. He decided to turn me into his own personal monster."

"Great. We were in such a good mood before, but now, we're in deep trouble." Vanitas kept silent. I couldn't blame him. An encounter like this was no good for either of us. "You know, we never got anything to eat." I tried to change the subject to lift our moods to higher places, but I felt like I was failing.

"I know," he replied. "If we run into them again, we'll need our strength." He took a quick look at his new attire. "Looks like Christy's clothes really are indestructible."

"Stop focusing on the bad for now!" His face turned to a surprised look. "For now we're safe, and together."

He simply chuckled. "You're such a brat." His face turned into a small smile. "I guess I shouldn't worry. I mean, it's not like I'm alone anymore. As long as I'm with you, I'll be fine."

"So, let's go get some- Ow!" I tried to get up, but my ankle was in too much pain. I had forgot that I tripped earlier. "I think I sprained my ankle."

"Hold still," he said as he put his hand over my ankle. "I didn't have time to do this while we were running. Of course if you had paid attention while you were running, you wouldn't have tripped in the first place." Was he actually lecturing me? He was so getting the evil glare later. "Now be still. You're right, you sprained your ankle pretty badly. Lucky for you, I happen to know plenty of healing spells." I felt incredible after he fixed my ankle. Almost like it never happened. "Now try to keep from breaking apart on me, okay?" He then leaned in and quickly kissed me. "If anything happens to you, I'll just end up blaming myself. Personally I don't feel like going through that again."

I couldn't help but laugh. He was doing a better job at lifting our spirits than I was. "You're such a jerk."

"C'mon, let's get something to eat and meet up with Leon. He should know what's going on."

"Okay!" We managed to get some food without any extra drama crashing into us. Cheese burgers and hotdogs. I never actually had one of these before when I worked in the Organization. They only ever let us have the healthier foods. I felt like we were safe, but Vanitas kept his guard up the entire time. He was constantly surveying the area. I moved in close to him, causing him to jump a little. "Calm down. You were able to sense them before. You'll do it again if they get too close." He did calm down a bit, but he wanted to stay vigilant. "So, where to now?"

"Leon's place. I feel like he might be able to help if we need it."

We kept walking along for a while before coming across a secluded house near the market place. "Is this the place," I asked.

"Yeah, looks like it." We walked over to the front door. Vanitas raised his hand to knock, but the door opened before he could.

"Well, thanks anyway," we heard a voice from inside. "Just let us know if they show up."

"No problem," I heard Leon say from the other side. "Actually, before you leave, there's someone I like you to meet. In fact, he looks just like you, Sora." Wait, SORA?! Vanitas opened up the door a little, just enough for Leon to see him. "Hey Vanitas! Perfect timing!" The door then opened fully, revealing that what I heard was true. Sora was here, and he was standing face to face with Vanitas.

 **A/N: Okay, to be honest, even I don't know where this is going to go now. Hope you all enjoy this chapter. I know it's a little shorter than the last few, but I think it worked out okay. Like always, feel free to drop a review for me!**


	17. Chapter 17

CHAPTER 17: VANITAS

This guy, is Sora? Our appearance is so close to identical, it's scary. Brown hair and blue eyes. Something felt off though. I felt a highly familiar presence from him. A second heart, full of light. VENTUS! This guy holds Ventus's heart within him! He was wearing all black clothing, with a hint of red throughout it. "Uh, hi," he greeted with a smile. "I'm Sora!"

This guy. There's something about him. I could feel my anger rising. Everyone had been comparing me to this guy. And I could just feel everyone doing it again, just not out loud. "So," I spoke, "you're Sora." He looked confused at my slightly dark statement. "In that case, I want you to fight me!" He looked shocked to hear that someone he just met had just challenged him to a fight.

"Vanitas," Xioin scolded. "You can't go around picking fights with everyone you meet!"

Sora turned his attention from me to Xion. "I know you," he said. Xion looked surprised that he would actually know her. "When I took my first Mark Of Mastery exam, I saw you in my dreams." Okay, I didn't have much of a reason for wanting to fight him before, but just hearing that last phrase sent me a little over the edge. "Actually, I saw both of you." Wait. What?

"BOTH of us," I asked.

"Yeah, but just for a brief moment." I wanted to know more, but I still wanted to fight him. "So, uh, Vanitas. Why do you want to fight me?"

Xion gave me and Sora concerned looks. It's true that when I left the Dark Realm I was hit with fatigue. But know I'm more or less back up to full strength. Maybe that's what worries her, that I might accidentally kill Sora. "Because, people have been comparing me to you constantly. I want to see it for myself. Why they compare us in more than appearance."

Sora pondered over my answer, as if he was actually considering granting my demand to fight. "Okay," he answered with a goofy smile. "But just so you know I just went through some called the Mark of Mastery, for the second time, and I'm a full fledged Keyblade Master now! So don't say I didn't warn you!"

"Hold it you two," said Leon cutting in. "If you two are gonna fight, it's not gonna be here in this house. We've already had to make extensive repairs before, and I don't particularly feel like doing it again. Take it outside."

I summoned my Void Gear, and walked out the front door. "Vanitas," Xion said grabbing my arm. "Are you sure you want to do this?"

"I have to Xion. This isn't like when I normally go into combat. This time, I feel something else. As if fighting him will give me some form of clarity. I know it sounds a little ridiculous, but I think it's what needs to be done." That was mostly true, it was more than that. Ventus had sought refuge in this guy. That alone was enough reason for me to fight him. "Are you ready for this, Sora?"

He walked out the front door as well, summoning his keyblade. The second I saw it, the image of the _X-Blade_ rushed into my head. The shape of the X was formed from two keyblades that looked exactly like Sora's. This was starting to get interesting. "You bet," he answered enthusiastically.

We both took our fighting stances, and the fight began. I rushed at Sora. He waited patiently for me to make my first strike, but I would be ready for his counter. I made a horizontal slash towards his head. As expected, he ducked down and prepared for an upwards strike. On anyone else, that might've worked, but he was playing into my hands. I kicked myself off the ground and into the air. I had naturally managed to vault myself over him and was swinging my blade towards him again. What I didn't know, was that he was ready for me. He managed to block it with ease. Color me impressed. Not only was he keeping up with me, he was predicting all of my attacks from there on in.

It was pretty much a back and forth battle. Sora and I both managed to get a few lucky shots off each other, but we were more or less equally matched. Sora couldn't have nearly the amount of experience I had, but what he lacked in experience, he made up for in natural skill. If he had my experience, then he'd be one of the most dangerous Keybladers out there. But as good as he was, there was no way I was losing this fight. I had been holding my dark powers back the whole time, limiting myself. I let a small amount of darkness slip out and applied it to my speed. Sora and I had been equal in both strength and speed, until I gave myself one slight advantage. He went for a quick stab motion, but I dodged it so quickly that he wouldn't be able to react to an attack at this speed.

I wanted to finish this fight myself, and now I had the perfect chance. One more blow would've finished it, but I caught a glimpse of Xion. Her face ran through my mind like a train. Concern was stabbing me in the face. It wasn't concern that I'd lose, but concern that I might make a serious mistake. Like let the part of me that held Xehanort's ambition to win at all costs take over. Damn it. When did I revert back to being the guy that would use any tactic, no matter how cheap, to win a fight? I released the darkness, causing my speed to return to a natural pace. Not only that, I refrained myself from taking the strike that would've ended it.

"You're pretty quick on your feet, Vanitas," Sora complimented. "Not many people have been able to dodge attacks like that from me before."

"This isn't a social club Sora," I noted. "It's a fight. Take it seriously." He just started laughing. He made the same mistake Xion did the last time we sparred. I charged at him again. This time it was his own fault that he was going to fall. 3. 2. 1. Slash! I almost got him. He managed to realize what was going on quick enough to parry my attack, but he wasn't well enough prepared for it. With my built up speed and his unplanned parry colliding, both our Keyblades were knocked out of our hands. From that point on we knew a fight with blades would go nowhere. We decided to use our fists. Not much had changed though. A few lucky shots here and there. Mostly we blocked or dodged each others blows. Until my left fist made contact with with the right side of his face. Simultaneously, his right fist made contact with the left side of my face.

We both ended up hitting the ground. "Well," Sora started.

"Guess that settles it," I added.

"It's a draw," we said in unison.

After that we went back into Leon, or Merlin's, place, where a nice young woman named Aerith patched us up. She was practically the definition of flowery happiness. Almost like a way less annoying version of Christy. Speaking of her, I should probably go see her again about getting some more clothes. Can't wear the same thing 24/7. Even though I pretty much did for the past 10 years. But I should go without Xion, and with noise canceling headphones. That way it would be a more tolerant and less annoying time.

"So," Sora spoke. "Your name's Xion, right?" Xion nodded her head with a nervous smile. "Nice to finally put a name to a face." He said that with the stupidest grin I'd ever seen. Was he hoping to get a laugh out of that? "You know, you look like my friend Kairi. Just with shorter hair. And her's is red, not black."

Xion face went into an extreme state of discomfort. Putting on that fake smile of her's had to be killing her. "You don't say," she said nervously.

Suddenly the door opened, revealing a man in a black coat, with his hood up. I was not going to wait for an attack this time. I summoned my Void Gear, and jumped at the cloaked man. He was fast on his feet. I slashed repeatedly, but he was way faster than me. "Whoa easy kid," I heard him say. But I wasn't slowing down. In fact I was speeding up. My next attack would've killed whoever this was, but he apparently had his own set of weapons. Blocking the left side of his head was a circular weapon with spikes covering it. I recognized it from my studies on weaponry with Xehanort.

"Vanitas," I heard Xion scream. "Stop! Don't hurt him!" That very line made me stop dead in my tracks. The man in the hood didn't take the clear shot he had to retaliate against me. Xion walked over to him, with hope in her eyes. "Axel?" Wait, did she just say Axel? As in one of her best friends, Axel? Oh boy. I'm in the dog house now. "Is it really you?"

The man lifted his hood, revealing a young man with long spiky red hair, and green eyes. The exact way Xion had described him to me. "Nah," he said. "My name is Lea. Got it memorized?"

Xion practically exploded in happiness. She couldn't help herself. She reached out and may have ended up crushing his spine with a bear hug. "Axel! I thought I'd never see you again!" It was a heart touching moment. But Xion clearly forgot one thing.

"Um, who are you," Axel, or Lea, asked.

The realization of what Xion told me when we first met came rushing back to her. When she was destroyed, everyone from her previous life forgot about her. She soon let go of her old friend. I wasn't surprised that she was crying. I was surprised however that she was smiling as well. "It's a long story, Axel," she answered.

"Well, you seem to know me pretty well. And by the way, it's Lea. Get it-"

"Memorized," she finished for him. "Don't worry. I will, Lea."

A while passed after that, considering Xion told Leon's group, which was comprised of him, the old guy named Cid, Aerith, a younger girl named Yuffie, and the old wizard Merlin, as well as Sora and Lea, about her time in the Organization. That happened to turn a few heads and drop a few jaws.

"Ah, no more," said Lea. "This is a lot to process ya know!"

He shouldn't be complaining. He got the basic run down. _I_ got the full story. And let me tell you, there's only so many times I could hear about having Ice cream after EVERY, LAST, MISSION.

"Xion," Sora spoke. "There's something you need to know about Roxas."

"I already know," she said. "I knew Roxas would have to rejoin with you in order for you to wake up. Riku told me."

Next thing I knew, I found myself looking at the computer monitor behind Cid. INCOMING TRANSMISSION. "Hey Cid," I spoke getting his attention. He looked at me and I pointed back to the monitor.

He then clicked the answer button, causing a video window to pop up. "Well hello there," said Clu from inside the transmission.

"Clu."

"So, you know who I am. Good. Because I have something you want." He moved out of the way to reveal Tron, locked in some kind of stasis pod. "You want Tron, and I want that DTD data you've got there. Bring it to me and I'll release Tron. Oh and don't worry about that dedicated access channel he severed. I reconnected it. So now you can bring it to me, Vanitas." He was calling me out. And it was working. My blood was boiling. "You have one hour until my deal expires, and I take care of Tron myself. I suggest you hurry over." After that, the transmission ended.

I didn't hesitate to grab my jacket and bolt out the door towards the castle. "Vanitas," I heard Xion calling from behind me. "Listen, I'm going with you. Tron's my friend too. Plus, I have a serious score to settle with Clu." I had no objections.

"I'm coming too," I heard Sora say. "Tron and I have been through a lot! So there's no way I'm sitting this one out!"

"Count me in," announced Lea, running with us. "I can't say I know Tron even a little, but if Xion here is really one of my best friends, then how can I possibly turn my back on her?"

I had no complaints with any of them coming with me. Clu had an army. I had the Unversed, my new friends, and Xion. "We're coming for you Clu! And we're gonna kick your ass!"

 **A/N: Oh boy Clu...** **Option A-RUN. Option B-RUN. Option C-RUN UNTIL YOU RUN INTO A HIGH SPEED DE-REZZING FAN. In case you guy are wondering, yes Sora's clothes are the ones from the new KH3 trailer. They were confirmed to be the clothes he gets after passing the M.O.M. Anyway, sorry I took so long with this update, I'll update ASAP, and as always feel free to drop a review!**


	18. Chapter 18

CHAPTER 18: XION

As we ran back to the castle, Sora and Axel, sorry Lea, filled me in on what happened to the Organization, and about the new group Xehanort made. 13 Dark Seekers. I swear, I wanted to tear them apart for what they did to Roxas and Lea.

"Ya know," Sora started. "Something's bugging me. How did Clu find out about that program the bring things into the real world in the DTD? I don't think Tron would've just told him about. Especially after the MCP tried to destroy the town."

He had a good point. Tron was way too smart to just let someone like Clu know about something that could free him from the grid. "Then someone who did know must've told him," Vanitas concluded. "The question is, who ran their mouths?"

"My money's on Braig," Lea said. Ya know what, I'm just gonna stick to Axel. It's easier to remember. "You said you ran into him earlier, and he was one of the few people who had access to that computer all those years ago. It wouldn't surprise me if he was the one who told Clu."

At last we saw the entrance to the castle. "Halt," commanded an tall man with red hair, that made him look oddly like Organization's NO. 5 Leaxeus. Wait, that was him!

"Open the door Aeleus," screamed Axel. The man, apparently named, Aeleus did that exactly.

We went rushing through the halls so fast that it was almost like a blur. At least with Axel navigating us through here, we'll make it there faster than if it was just me and Vanitas. Hall after hallway was completely empty, until we made it into the much larger and open hall which led to Ansem's room. Heartless were all over the hallway. Shadows, Neo Shadows, Large Bodies, and even a Guard Armor. "We don't have time for this," Vanitas screamed as he summoned his Keyblade and slashed through 3 shadows at once. "I'll tear you all apart!"

Something wasn't right with Vanitas. I'd seen him angry before, but the look on his face was pure rage. When I looked into his eyes, I saw them glow. "Vanitas," I screamed, but he either blocked me out, or he just couldn't here me. He slashed violently through the smaller heartless, but when the Guard Armor tied to attack him, Vanitas brought out something with equal size. The very same Unversed that he used to free me from my cell in the grid. It was his Trinity Armor. While the two armors fought, Vanitas kept his attention on all the smaller enemies. I however noticed him getting more aggressive as the fight went on. He'd been somewhat different since our encounter with Xigbar, or Braig, or whatever you wanna call him.

Suddenly a large body charged at him. Vanitas would've been hit if Axel hadn't pulled him out of the way. "Vanitas," he said, grabbing Vanitas's attention. "Listen! You three need to go! I can handle things here by myself." Nothing could've prepared me for what I saw next. As the large body changed its direction towards Axel and Vanitas, Axel charged towards it. In his left hand he called on one of his chakrams. But in his right, he brought forth a Keyblade! "Eat this you fat pest!" Okay Axel. Not your best in combat quip. As he destroyed it he turned his head to face us. "GO!"

We complied with his order to head into the Grid. We ran as fast as possible. I looked at the clock on the monitor as Vanitas punched in the commands to get us to the Grid. It had been a little over half an hour since Clu gave us that warning. "Hurry Vanitas," I rushed.

"We're good to go," he stated. "I set it up so we land as close to Clu's base as possible."

The light from the machine began to shine brightly. It was so bright that I had to shut my eyes. I couldn't see anything, but I could feel a hand on my left hand. Considering the fact that Sora was on my right, I knew it was Vanitas's. I thought about how he told me that whenever he was with me, he felt stronger than ever. The same was true for me. "Let's do this," I said confidently.

I opened my eyes to see the neon covered city starring me in the face once more. I looked down and saw that I was back in the uniform I had the last time I was here. Same thing happened to Vanitas. He was in the same suit he had before, helmet and all. I looked to Sora and saw him in a suit similar to mine. Only there was a crown on his back. Not only that but instead of a helmet, he had a visor protecting his face.

"Alright, let's get moving," Vanitas spoke. We began running towards Clu's base at full speed. "Listen up, I've got the DTD, so when we get there, I want you two to search for Tron while I keep Clu distracted."

"You want us to use you as bait," asked Sora. I had to agree with him. Using Vani as bait wasn't exactly something I was eager to do. "Our best chance is to stick together!"

"No. Tron comes first! I'm fast enough to avoid Clu on my own. I don't want you two wasting time trying to protect me."

As much as I hated to admit it, he had a point. He was really fast, and he could out number Clu's forces with his unversed. "Okay Vani," I complied. "Don't worry about Tron. We'll get him out of there."

Vanitas then branched off away from us and headed straight for Clu's base. Sora and I went through a number of back alleys and abandoned buildings to avoid being detected. We came to the end of the alley when I saw about 10 armed guards patrolling nearby. There was no way we were sneaking past them. At least until they heard a small explosion nearby. Vanitas had made his move, and made his presence known. The guards then began to pursue him. With the coast clear, Sora and I made our way into the base through an open window. The place was more or less empty. Most of the guards must be outside chasing Vanitas, or searching the perimeter.

Sora almost made a hasty mistake by stepping too far. "Don't," I hissed at him. "Clu has this place under surveillance." Clu had made one small mistake, he let me see the layout of the building and the security before betraying my trust, and I had an edge thanks to that. Secretly I've always had a photographic memory. One of the perks of being _made_ of memories. So one look at the schematics was like 10 years of memorization for me. "I know the complete layout of this place. I can get us to Tron without risk of being caught."

I was right. With my knowledge of the building's surveillance, we were practically invisible. There were a total of 50 floors in this building, and we made it through 48 without so much as a whisper of noise. Floor 49 would be either difficult or easy to get through, depending on whether or not Clu was in there. That was a training room, meant to keep him in combat condition. Honestly, part of me _wants_ him to be in that room. I want some serious pay back.

We opened the door to see no one in there. Well it made our job of getting to Tron easier, but I was seriously hoping to give Clu a beat down. "Well well," I heard someone say. The voice was familiar. I didn't see anyone, but I knew there was definitely someone lurking around in here.

"Who's there," Sora called out.

"Well Sora, still not being a good boy are ya?"

Where was this guy. "Come out," I demanded.

"Why? So you can beat me? As if!" Oh no. Only one person I know says that. I looked up to the ledge near the ceiling to see a man in a black coat. He removed his hood, revealing an older man with a scar, one yellow eye, and an eye patch covering his right eye. Xigbar. Last time I encountered him I was weakened and exhausted. I ran then, but I'll gonna make him pay for shooting Vani in the back. "So Sora, I take it that's Kairi you're with?" I removed the helmet covering my face to show Xigbar my glare towards him. "Oh ho. I guess not. Well Roxas, I'm afraid I can't let you go any further. Clu wouldn't be happy if you interfered."

"So you _are_ the one who told Clu all about what's in the DTD," I concluded.

"Get out of our way," Sora screamed ashe charged ahead.

Xigbar then proceeded to open fire on him. I jumped in and blocked his shots with ease. Xigbar's specialty was long ranged combat. That gave me and Sora plenty of reaction time for blocking or avoiding his shots. I however had my own form of long range combat. I had magic. While Sora continued his charge I launched fire and blizzard spells at Xigbar. He naturally had no problems dodging my continuous assaults, but I wasn't trying to actually hit him, even though that would've made this even better. I was simply distracting him. Sora managed to free style parkour his way up the wall towards Xigbar. The plan seemed to be working really well. Sora managed to get on the ledge and began charging at him.

Sora almost had him too. Xigbar must've caught sight of him, because he teleported away. His teleportation technique was way faster than using dark corridors, but it could only take him in short distances. I surveyed the area looking for any sign of him. "You two sure are quite the team," I heard him say.

"Why don't you face us like a man you coward," screamed Sora. "Or are you just too chicken to get your butt kicked by two teenagers?"

" _Chicken?_ As if! I'm just not stupid enough to get taken out by a sneak attack."

Sora's antagonizing seemed to be getting on Xigbar's bad side. "It's no wonder you were so easy for Sora to beat," I added. "Once you actually show your face, you don't seem like much of a threat. In fact, you're just an old man who's getting his but kicked by teenagers all the time. Like say, Terra." Yeah, after encountering Xigbar earlier, Vanitas told me about how Xigbar lost his eye. "I mean he wasn't even a full fledged master, and he completely knocked you around like a little-"

"SHUT UP," I heard him scream as he jumped out and opened fire on me. My plan worked. He just opened up as much fire on me as he could. I had no problem blocking and dodging the attacks. In fact this worked in my favor. He'd completely lost it and let his defenses wide open, giving Sora the much needed chance for him to strike. When he realized that Sora was behind him, he must've let himself forget about his teleportation power, because he took a hit. Sora hadn't made a complete hit, but he still managed to make a small cut on his face. "YOU THINK YOU CAN BEAT ME?! AS IF!" He then opened fire on both of us.

As I dodged I continued to mock Xigbar. "Have you still not learned not to mess with Keyblade wielders?" I must've hit a serious button there. He then fused his two guns together and charged up a large shot. It was slow and easy to dodge, but I almost regretted getting on his bad side there. That shot he fired ricocheted off the walls and nearby skewered me. It would have if Sora hadn't knocked it away.

"Careful," he said. "Those shots don't shatter on contact!"

Xigbar seemed like he was wising up to my tricks now. Losing his temper would get him nowhere, but fighting me _and_ Sora was proving to be just as ineffective as that. "Well, I guess I've stalled long enough," he said. Wait. 'Stalled'? "Clu wanted time, and it's finally up." I looked at the clock nearby and realized something, we had hit the hour limit. "Time's up kido. You too Poppet." Xigbar then dived into a dark corridor.

"No," I yelled, but it was too late. He got away. "That coward. He's always pissed me off."

"Calm down Xion," Sora said. "Remember, Tron's our priority right now."

He was right. Tron came first. We headed up to the next floor, and to our surprise, found no one. The room was empty. We briefly surveyed the room, looking for any sign of Tron. It didn't take very long though. In the back corner of the room was the stasis container, with Tron inside. His suit however wasn't white anymore, now it was black with red neon lighting. On the monitor was a message that said 'REPURPOSING COMPLETE'.

"So how do we get him outta here," I asked.

"XION MOVE," Sora screamed as he tackled me out of the way. Tron had broken out of his stasis pod, and tried to attack us. "Tron stop! We're your friends!"

"What's wrong with him?"

"Clu repurposed his code! He's not Tron anymore. Now he's someone else. He's Rinzler."

 **A/N: Oh boy... It just got real. I'm doing my best to keep writing for you awesome people, and I will update as soon as I can. As always, feel free to drop me a review. LIGHT THAT REVIEW BOX UP XD.**


	19. Chapter 19

CHAPTER 19: VANITAS

Dammit. Don't these guys ever get tired of chasing me? What the Hell am I thinking? I gotta keep their attention while Xion and Sora save Tron. "C'mon," I mocked. "I don't know why, but I actually thought you'd put up a real fight for me." For programs they sure get agitated real easily. I hadn't really even broken a sweat. In all honesty, I was actually slowing myself down so that they could keep up. Due to the fact that I could easily outrun them in a heartbeat, I kinda had to slow myself down. "Jeez you guys. If you don't catch me soon, Clu might actually De-rezz you." Slowing myself down like this was turning into a serious drag, pun not intended.

I kept my slow pace going for a good 10 minutes before I actually regretted it. As I turned the corner I saw multiple guards on motorcycles. Which were of course, covered in neon lighting. Forget pacing myself. Now I _had_ to run faster. I'll admit that while I was fast as Hell at top speed, I was no where near fast enough to out run high speed vehicles. However I had no problem weaving my way through the back alleys. Those bikes on the other hand couldn't move through a tight corner without smashing into everything. I knew however that once they balanced out I wouldn't be able to out run them. So I improvised.

I began climbing up the wall like a freaking parkour master. Thankfully the alley was thin enough for me to keep jumping between the two buildings whenever I ran out of leverage on either side. Before I knew it, I was up on the roof. Not my best move as Clu's guards were waiting for me. So streets, bad, rooftops, bad, and since they have air ships, the skies will soon be, bad. It's official, I'm out numbered and screwed.

"Well well," Clu said, appearing from behind his small army. "I didn't think you'd be so reckless as to provoke all of my guards."

"Well ya know," I began responding, "I'm not particularly one for logical reasoning." I summoned forth my Void Gear to prepare for a fight. There was no way I was escaping without turning a few Clu guards, and hopefully Clu, into a pixilated mess. "You want my Keyblade so bad, you're gonna have to take it from me." I had to keep him talking long enough for Xion and Sora to get Tron or this would be for nothing.

"Actually, you're going to hand it and the DTD data over to me, willingly." I actually caught myself chuckling at that remark. If he thinks I'm gonna give them up, he's in for a painful lesson. "You see, you have two things I want, and I have three things you want."

"Really? And pray tell, what would those three things be?" He moved out of the way to show me Tron in a black suit with red neon lighting, and he was holding two people by his arms. I went to shock, then to immediate anger when I finally processed what I was seeing. Xion and Sora, both beaten and covered in blood. "Clu, you son of a-"

"Careful," he interrupted. Tron then let go of Xion and Sora, then proceeded to put two identity disks right up against their necks. They didn't look like they had the strength to try to run at all. "I'll make you a deal. Hand over your Keyblade, and I let Sora and Xion go free. Hand over the DTD, and not only will I relinquish Rinzler, but I will also use his source code to turn him back into Tron. Given the circumstances, I'd say this is a very good deal."

My anger was at a boiling point. If I try to save Xion and Sora, Tron kills them. If I refuse to hand over either my Keyblade or the DTD, then he still kills them, and this entire mission is for nothing. I guess, I only have one option. "Fine," I complied in defeat.

"Vanitas no," Xion tried to argue, but I wouldn't hear it. I won't sacrifice her, or Sora. I tossed my Void Gear in front of him. As he picked it up he signaled his men to release Xion and Sora. As they walked over to me I kept all my concentration on Clu. His smug look was really pissing me off.

"Good job," he commented. "Now hand over the DTD."

Xion tugged at my hand as if to tell me, 'Don't even think about it'. "Screw you Clu," I spat. I called my Void Gear to return to me and immediately cast a curaga spell on Xion and Sora, returning them to their physical peaks. Clu looked baffled that I could just take they Keyblade back without even being anywhere near it. "Keybladers 101 Clu-less. The Keyblade chooses its master, and this one chose me, not you." Sora and Xion then proceeded to called forth their Keyblades. "And you are not getting your greedy digital hands on a single one of them, or the DTD."

Clu looked like he'd reached his boiling point. "Without the source code, which I have," Clu began, "Tron will never return from being Rinzler."

I smirked at his comment. "Oh I'm well aware of that," I replied. "You see, Tron didn't just give me the DTD data he had. He also gave me his _original_ source code. The one you have is nothing but a second rate knock off copy. Tron's smarter than you might think, Clu-less."

Oh yeah. He's definitely pissed now. "Take them down," Clu shouted. "Bring me that Identity disk!" I guess the keyblade _is_ a little unnecessary if he's got the DTD. Clu charged at me but I jumped out of the way. Instead he attacked Xion. I wanted to help her, but she gave me the "I'm fine, just do what you have to" look. Sora on the other hand was fighting like a beast. Clu's guards didn't seem to be able to keep up with him. I brought out a few Unversed to give him a better edge. I however found myself face to face with Tron.

"Tron," I said trying to get through to him. "Listen to me. You don't have to do what Clu says. Remember your friends." He must not have been listening to me, because he brought out his two identity disks and charged at me. I grabbed my own disk with my left hand and fended off his assault on me. With my keyblade keeping him at a distance, I thought I gained an advantage. I was wrong. I forgot that these disks could be thrown. I wasn't used to having attacks coming at me from multiple directions in a one on one fight, so when the one he threw came back around, I wasn't ready for it when it hit my helmet so hard that it actually crack it enough to reveal my left eye. "Dammit Tron, that freaking hurt!"

Tron was clearly being ruthless. I'm expendable at this point, and he knew it. I dodged and blocked as much as I could but Tron's ability to switch up the battle at any point was proving to be too much for me. I continued getting cut all over my body from surprise attacks. I'd finally been fed up with his sneak attacks. I used my disk too knock away the returning disk while using my keyblade to keep him at bay. The entire time I was trying to figure out how to get him back to normal, which would've been easier if he'd maybe left instructions on how to do so.

It suddenly hit me. I was effected by Tron's disk when I attached it to me, so maybe the same could be done to him. I charged at him, throwing my keyblade like a dagger. Naturally he dodged it, which gave me my opening. I flipped over his shoulder and tossed my disk perfectly onto his back. He then turned towards me, clearly not realizing that I pulled a fast one. Honestly, he'd done so much damage that it was a freaking miracle that I pulled off that trick. He started walking towards me, as if to finish the job, but he stopped. He dropped both of the disks in his hands, and fell to his knees. And his suit began to flicker between its current black and red combo and its white and blue combo.

"Wake up Tron," I screamed. The process looked fairly painful from the way he was acting. As if whatever Clu did to him was trying its hardest to fight back.

"I," I heard him say. "I... Fight... I fight... FOR THE USERS!" Tron's suit reverted completely back to it's original form of white and blue. "Thank you Vanitas. I owe you one."

"Well considering the fact that you just beat the living hell out of me, I'd say you got that right."

As much as we wanted to continue our little chat, we knew it had to wait. My Unversed had been eliminated and Sora was starting to look tired. It didn't look like there were any less guards than when he started. Probably because Clu's airships kept dropping more on him. I looked past the small army of soldiers to see Xion in a heated battle with Clu. She looked more or less in better condition than Sora, Tron, and I did. At least she was in a one on one fight. We on the other hand had to fight our way past an army if we wanted to help her.

"Good to have you back Tron," Sora stated.

"It's good to be back," Tron replied.

"Guys," I interrupted. "Now might not be the best time for a happy reunion."

Of course I had to be right about that. Instead of having a wall of guards blocking our way, we were soon encircled by more guards dropping from airships. Now we were back to back to back. Tron with two disks, Sora with one Keyblade, and me with my Void Gear and Identity Disk. Surrounded by about 40 guards. Forget about how earlier I said I was screwed. Now we're Super Screwed! The fight broke out with the three of us desperately trying to keep the guards at bay. Sora's sword play only kept them so far, Tron's dual disks weren't making any serious connection, and I was so beaten up that it was a miracle that I was still standing _and_ fighting. I wanted to whip out some serious dark magic and blow them all away from us, but if I try, I might end up hitting Xion as well, considering she's not within the 'safe zone' as I call it. Not to mention the fact that the unversed wouldn't be much help in a tight corners situation like this.

"Tron," Sora yelled. "Let try our old _Setup_ trick."

'Setup'? What in the name of Kingdom Hearts is he talking about.

"Got it," Tron complied. Suddenly holographic terminals appeared all around us. "Running executor!" Suddenly multiple white objects, that are a little hard to describe, appeared out of nowhere, attacking the guards within close radius. Color me impressed. This was a legitimately good defense with an effective offense. "Access approved!" Sora then slammed his hand onto a holographic terminal, sending all the white attack bots all over the place, attacking practically all the guards.

"You guys didn't think to do that sooner," I complained.

"Sorry man," Sora apologized. "It's kind of a one-shot move. Takes a lot out of us."

Now all the guards that were on the roof were gone. No others seemed to wanna come down here and fight after seeing the decimation of a small army in a matter of seconds. The only people left on this roof was me, Sora, Tron, Xion, and Clu.

"Well Clu," I taunted, cutting in the middle of his fight with Xion. "Looks like you're out numbered, _and_ under powered. My advise would be to give up. There's no way you can win now."

"He's got a point," Xion added. "I mean you couldn't even beat me alone. Guess it's not so easy when I don't have my back turned, huh?"

"You think this is over," Clu questioned. "No. As long as I'm still functioning it will never be over. I will create the perfect system! I will hunt you down! I will take this world, _and_ that insufferable user world! I will take both worlds, right to their maximum potential! And as long as I'm still alive, you're all as good as dead!"

"Dude," Sora jumped in, "you need a serious chill pill."

"SHUT UP," Clu screamed as he hurled his disk at us. Instead of dodging it, I caught it, while it was still spinning. With my hand I should obviously say, and let me tell you, AAHHHHH THAT HURTS LIKE HELL! Seriously, why am I the one constantly getting hurt?! "You think this is over?! Never!" Clu charged at me to get his disk back, or to take mine. Either way, he was in for a rude awakening.

BAM! I knocked him out with one left hook. "And stay down."

After that, we got Clu locked up behind an extremely high encrypted firewall, and managed to find a code in the DTD data that returned a ton of Clu's guards back into their original selves, before he repurposed them. "Don't worry about Clu," Tron assured us. "He won't be getting out of that firewall. Not without the data in the DTD."

"Something's still bugging me though," Sora said. "Why would Xigbar tell Clu about the DTD? What was the point in all of this?" Sora made a good point. Braig, or Xigbar, never really did anything without good reason.

"Hard to say," Xion added. "Even when I was in the Organization, he wasn't exactly easy to get a read on."

"Whatever the reason is, I bet it has something to do with Xehanort," I concluded. "It's possible that he needed something, and to get it, he needed us out of the way and occupied."

"But why go here of all places," Sora asked. "Out of all the worlds, why come to this one and stir up so much trouble?"

Sora's had another good point. It was weird that they'd choose this specific world, right when Xion, Sora, and I are in it. Then it hit me. "Because what they want is somewhere in the castle," I said. Without uttering another word, we ran towards a nearby terminal, similar to the ones we used to escape. To our luck, it was one that was linked back to the real world. I set it up immediately to take us back to the real world. "Sorry to run Tron, but something's just come to our attention." Tron simply gave us a thumbs up and a goofy grin as the light from the machine cut off our vision.

Next thing I knew, we were sent flying out of the machine that sent us into the grid. I hadn't exactly set it up for safe traveling, so they re-entry to the castle ended up with Sora and Xion crashing into Lea. I on the other hand crashed into someone else. I was still slightly blinded from the light, but I could make out the slight distinction from the person that I landed on enough to realize that I was now laying on another girl. Oh Xion's gonna have a torment field day with me now. "Are you okay," I heard her say. Her voice sounded like sweetness and kindness had somehow merged together to make sound. As my vision became more vivid, I noticed her other features. Eyes as blue as Xion's, auburn hair that reached to her shoulders, and a bright smile. She was wearing a black sleeveless hoodie, which if it had sleeves, would look like Sora's, but with pink lining instead of red. As well as a pink shirt without sleeves, and white shorts to go with, her black and pink shoes.

"Yeah," I replied. "I'm fine." I got up and extended my hand to help her up. She accepted my hand and rose to her feet. To be honest, she was actually quite radiant. Which I will NEVER say aloud. Xion would kill me, I just know it. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah," she answered. "I'm just fine."

"Kairi," I heard Sora say in shock. "What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be training with Master Yensid?"

"Hey," I interrupted. "As interesting as this conversation may be, shouldn't we be focusing on the task at hand?" We were about to search the castle, until we heard a noise coming from the lower level, where I had fought with Leon. The five of us ran over to the railing to see a huge opening in the platform down there. And coming out of that opening, was someone wearing a black hood. "I was right! C'mon, let's head to the elevator!" As we headed down, I started to sense two very familiar scents rapidly closing in on us. I couldn't exactly put my finger on it, but those scents are way too familiar. We ran out the elevator door to see the man in the hood, waiting for us. The two familiar scents were _both_ coming from him! "Who are you?"

He lifted his hood to reveal features I hadn't seen in ten years. Yellow eyes, silver hair, and a familiar face. Terra's face. This was the man Xion told me about. Xemnas.

 **A/N: I'm so sorry for taking so long to update! Had a small case of writers block, but once it cleared up, I was writing like a mad man. Hope you enjoyed the chapter, and yes I know that I kinda breezed through the grid return, but I wanted to get into the bigger story at hand. This is just the beginning! As always feel free to drop a review!**


	20. Chapter 20

CHAPTER 20: XION

Xemnas, my old boss. I hardly knew him compared to Saix, but he was no better. I hated him as much as, if not more than, Saix, for everything he'd done to Roxas and Axel. But as much as I hated him, there was a part of me that feared him even more. I'd never seen him in action before, but during my time in the Organization, I'd learned about his ethereal blades, and his ability to shift between the realities of nothingness. In a way it's almost like Xigbar's teleportation ability. If this were Xigbar or Saix, I'd have no problem standing up against them. But I couldn't get over the shaking in my legs, or the unmistakable fear in my heart. I looked to my other friends, and saw that they didn't seem scared, or surprised to see him. Instead, all I saw was anger. They had no fear towards this monster, but that's only because they don't know about what he's capable of. Before I fought against Roxas, he tortured me, messed with my head, and forced me to fight Roxas.

"So you're Xemnas," Vanitas spoke. "I gotta say, I'm seriously looking forward to beating the living crap out of you."

Xemnas ignored Vanitas, and turned his attention towards me. "Of all the faces before me," he bagan, "your's is the only one I don't recognize. Yet I see the greatest amount of recognition coming from you. I wonder why that is." Crap! That's right, he doesn't remember me either, but now I've pretty much blown what little cover I had.

"Don't speak to her," Vanitas screamed. "Don't even look at her!"

Xemnas turned his attention back towards Vanitas, as did I. Immediately I noticed that his eyes were glowing yellow once again. Next thing I knew, he was charging right towards Xemnas. "NO VANITAS," I desperately cried out. He didn't know what Xemnas was like. Sora, Kairi, Axel, and I ran right after him. For them, it was probably about backing him up. I just wanted to stop Vanitas before anything happened. It wasn't that I was afraid for his safety, but since our encounter with Xigbar, whenever he gets into a serious battle he seems to lose his sense of control. He brought his Keyblade down towards Xemnas's head, but it was no use, Xemnas deflected it with his left ethereal blade like it was nothing. "Vanitas, move!"

It was too late. Xemnas attacked Vanitas's left side with his right blade. I suddenly felt a heightened sense of fear wash over me. I was sure Vanitas was being cut in half as he cried out in pain, but nothing happened. Vanitas had closed his eyes from the pain, but then opened them and grabbed Xemnas by the coat, and head butted him. Ouch. I was amazed by the simple fact that Xemnas hadn't cut right through him, then I remembered, our clothes! Thank you Christy! He then kicked off Xemnas's chest, giving himself some distance. "AAARRRHHH," Vanitas screamed, clutching his side.

"Are you okay Vanitas," Sora asked.

"UGH! I think my ribs are broken!" At least he's not dead.

Vanitas tried to stand but winced at the pain rushing over him. "Stop Vani," I said. "You're hurt, and if you move too much you might make it worse!" I kept him from getting up, but he was still trying to push past me towards his target. I looked back towards Xemnas to see him and Sora in combat. Sora dodged a horizontal slash by jumping over it. He swung his Keyblade towards Xemnas, which he then prepared his right blade for a counter attack. Before he got a chance to swing though, his right arm had been covered in ice. Kairi had managed to catch him with a blizzard spell. Instead of a counter attack, Xemnas took the full blunt force of a metal weapon to the face. I cringed at the thought of how much that would hurt. "Stay here Vanitas." It seemed that he finally started listening to me. He'd calmed down, and realized that in his current condition he'd probably only make things worse. I charged into the battle.

"Why are you here Xemnas," Sora demanded to know. "What is it that you're after?"

Xemnas actually started chuckling at his question. He then turned just enough to reveal a blue Keyblade strapped to his back. "I'm just here to aquire something of value."

"Aqua's Keyblade," I heard Vanitas say.

"I see you remember, Vanitas."

As the conversation went on, I surveyed the area for anything that could give us a bigger advantage. I then noticed that Axel was missing. I kept looking for him but I didn't see him anywhere. How could he vanish in a place like this? There's nowhere to hide. Then I caught a glimpse of something hanging on one of the machines. It was Axel. He looked like he was waiting for the perfect time to strike. Vani must've caught on to that, so that means he's a distraction. "Xemnas," I called. "Xigbar shot Vanitas in the back earlier. He could've finished him, so why didn't he?" I wanted some answers of my own. "What is it that he did to Vanitas?"

"So you caught onto that," he said. "Well I'm not going to simply divulge information like that so easily." Of course you won't, but I don't need the answers right now. I just needed to keep you busy. Axel leapt from the machine from up high at an alarmingly fast speed. Xemnas got wise just in time to block Axel's keyblade with his right blade, but he couldn't block an attack coming to his back from the chakram in Axel's left hand. He did the only thing he could, vanish. Xemnas's most used escape tactic. I know that when he comes back out, he'll have a copy to throw us off, but that only works in a one on one fight. This is one on four you demented monster. As expected, two of Xemnas came up. One was at the far end of the platform. The other was in front of me. I wanted to fight, but he grabbed me by the neck and tossed me into Kairi.

"Are you okay," she asked as I rubbed my neck. I simply nodded.

"Ya know," Sora started, "you're really starting to piss me off!" Sora and Axel charged towards him. Axel shot fire spells from his keyblade, while Sora discharged thunder spells with his. Both missed Xemnas, but they kept casting. Kairi then came in launching blizzard spells at him. The three of them kept attacking with magic, and I took the chance they gave me. Xemnas was so busy dodging that he wouldn't be able to dodge a straight up attack from me. At least that's what I'm hoping for. I charged into the hectic element chaos, keyblade in hand. Xemnas looked well enough distracted. 3 seconds until I'm in range. 2. 1. STRIKE! Xemnas may have turned in time to see my attack coming, but it was too late for him. I hadn't made a fatal blow, but I definitely left a big cut in his chest that spurt out some blood. Xemnas didn't seem surprised or angered that I got him. He actually looked amused.

"That was a well played strategy," he complimented. He then used the heat from one of his ethereal blades to actually cauterize the wound I just gave him. The messed up part, was that he barely flinched, which must've been hard since that had to hurt like hell. "However, I won't be defeated by such a simple tactic." I charged at him once again, betting that his new wound would at least slow him down. I should gamble for a living, cuz I seem to be extremely good at it. He was definitely moving much slower than before, but still fast enough that I didn't want to get close enough for him to counter. I motioned myself in an upward strike position, but my Keyblade was knocked away, leaving me weaponless. Xemnas then used his second blade to slash at me. I had no chance of escaping unscathed, but that didn't mean I'd stand there and get attacked. I pulled my body back, putting my arms in front of my face for protection. I felt the blades scrape against my arms, but I didn't feel any heat from his blades. I looked up to see Xemnas just as shocked as I was that I wasn't even remotely hurt. Then I once again remembered what I was wearing. Christy's custom clothes. No tearing aloud. Which meant I had an advantage.

I advanced towards Xemnas, without my keyblade. He slashed at me, and scraped against my clothes again, causing nothing to happen to me. I threw a punch at his face, while simultaneously adding a thundaga spell to it. Thanks to my expertise in magic, when I hit him, it probably felt like getting hit by a freight train head on. Xemnas went flying, but I wasn't done with him. I casted a Magnet spell, pulling him right back to me. The others didn't interfere. They just watch my power at work, with their jaws dropped. Once Xemnas was almost in range, I once again charged thundaga in my fist, while simultaneously using a fire spell to force my arm into a much higher speed. Basically, Xemnas felt a much more painful hit this time around. My strength felt incredible. Being near Vanitas always made me stronger, but being near Sora, _and_ Kairi, the two sources of my existence, I felt unstoppable. Every time I knocked him back, the Magnet spell just brought him back for more punishment.

Honestly, it was more of an onslaught than I meant it to be. Sometimes, he flailed around and scraped against my clothes again. I seriously owe Christy for these clothes. "ENOUGH," Xemnas screamed. Next thing I knew, he vanished again. With its target gone, the magnet spell died out. I couldn't sense his presence anywhere.

"XION BELOW YOU," Vanitas screamed.

Next thing I knew, Xemnas came out of the ground beneath me, knocking me into the air.

"XION," I heard everyone else scream. Next thing I knew, I was being attacked from practically every angle. Left, right, up, down, front, and back. Xemnas was attacking me with everything he had. I wanted to call for my keyblade to fight back, but the pain in my body was keeping me from thinking straight. I was flying all over the place at this point. My body was in so much pain that I couldn't even hear what was going on around me. All I could hear was the ringing running through my ears. I felt my body go numb, and noticed something. Xemnas wasn't even attacking me anymore. Now I was falling head first back to the ground. Everything seemed to be slowing down at this point. The others were running towards to where I was falling, but they won't make it there. I could tell by how fast I was falling that I'd hit the ground before they even got close.

As I fell, all I could see, with my vision beginning to fade, was Sora, Axel, and Kairi running with desperate looks in their eyes. Xemnas, starting to vanish with a sly grin on his face. And Vanitas, with a look of horror starring at me as I fell. Don't look at me like that Vani, I wanted to say. I wanted to leave him with one last thing. I didn't have the strength left to say anything, so I simply gave him a smile. Before I knew it, my vision was gone. Everything was gone. I couldn't perceive anything around me. I felt everything, turn to darkness.

 **A/N: Oh boy. I feel like I may have crossed a line with this chapter. Bet you never thought I'd go this far. Anyway, as always drop a review on what you thought of this chapter.**


	21. Chapter 21

CHAPTER 21: VANITAS

It's run through my head constantly ever since it happened. The sight of seeing her fall to her death. I saw it every time I closed my eyes. Like a nightmare that wouldn't end. I watched as she fell over 150 feet towards the ground, Xemnas disappearing, and my friends trying their best to run fast enough to catch her. The pain near my ribs felt excruciating, but I pushed past it enough to use my top speed to catch her and break her fall. After that we took her to a hospital. Doctors said it was a miracle that she was even alive. 20 percent of her bones were fractured, her right wrist was broken, and she sustained multiple injuries to her internal organs. And she's been in a coma ever since it happened, 25 days ago.

I had 3 fractured ribs after that fight. I healed quickly, but Xion's barely held on this entire time. I sat in the seat next to her while I watched her and listened to the machines keeping her alive beeping. I hardly ever left her side. Sora and Kairi stopped by often. I'd gotten to know them much better since the day we met. Clearly they had a thing for each other, but they were too ignorant to see it. Lea came less often, but still enough to seem like he was always here. Xion told me pretty much everything about her time in the Organization, so Lea kept asking me about everything he could. Said he kept trying to piece together his forgotten friendship with her. I'd told him all that I knew, but it didn't really seem to sink in like he was hoping. And of course Christy found out. At least she was quieter when she was in the hospital.

"Knock knock," Sora said coming in. "Still no change huh?"

I shook my head to tell him no. Sora came here more than anyone. Guess I'm not surprised. After the grid, we became close friends. I was even introduced to his friend Riku, and even met the King Mickey. A face that I haven't seen in ten years. I was just glad that he never knew my name, or ever saw my face. That's something I got away with. "Have you managed to find Xemnas or Xehanort yet," I asked without even turning my attention towards him.

"No. We haven't run into any of the dark seekers since Xemnas." I honestly couldn't care less about the others. I wanted Xemnas and Xehanort. "Don't worry, we'll find them soon enough." Soon enough didn't feel good enough for me. I'm angry, and I want those monsters 6 feet under. I know what Xion would say. Don't let your anger take control, but I _wanted_ my anger in control. I _wanted_ to see Xemnas as broken as Xion. No, I wanted him in even worse shape than Xion. My hands were shaking with that anger. "C'mon. You need some air." Sora grabbed me by the arm and pulled me up. I wasn't really willing to fight back. He was right.

We headed to a nearby diner down the street and grabbed a few burgers. I honestly hadn't eaten for days at this point, and my body seriously needed the food. "You were right," I told him. "I needed this. I'm just worried about Xion. And seriously hoping for payback."

"Hey. You saved her. We would've never gotten to her in time, and you, even with three fractured ribs, managed to catch and save her. We'll get Xemnas, but you gotta keep yourself together."

"It's not as simple as that for me."

"Why? Why are you beating yourself up so much when it wasn't even your fault?"

"Because I swore that I'd protect her no matter what!" Silence fell on us. I wanted to start ranting my head off, but I kept myself calm. "I promised her. It figures that the only promise I ever make to her, I can't even keep. If I hadn't rushed in and gotten myself hurt, then-"

"Just stop it!" I was shocked. Sora was usually so sympathetic, it was weird to hear him sort of snap. "You did everything you could to help her. If it wasn't for you, she _would_ be dead! She made her choice. She chose to fight. So instead of moping around, feeling sorry for yourself, use this as fuel. Use it to protect her next time. Cause when she wakes up, _she's_ the one that's gonna want more payback than you."

I was astonished. Sora wasn't usually so bold and harsh. But he got the message through to me. "You sure have a way with words. Thanks." This was a genuine friendship I had with Sora. It was easier for him to open up to people though. He didn't seem to have much trouble making friends with anyone. I on the other hand tried to avoid as many people as possible, usually.

"So the hospital bills must be stacking up by now huh?"

"Yeah, but it's nothing I can't handle."

"I still can't believe you saved up that much in ten years. I wish I could help, but all our missions are having me blow through my munny on items to help in battle. I may need to get a day time job." Sora started laughing at his own misfortune with munny. And soon enough, I started to laugh a little too. "So, have you thought about what you're gonna do after Xion wakes up?"

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"Well I doubt you're gonna wanna stay in that hospital forever once Xion wakes up. And you are only 15 or 16. Wait how old are you?"

"16 sounds about right."

"Hey, that's my age! Funny story, I actually missed my fifteenth birthday cause I was asleep when it came around. But I at least got to celebrate my sixteenth!" I coughed to snap him out of his own world so that he'd get to the point. "In any case, you're still under age, so no one's gonna let you just rent out an apartment or buy a house, even with all the munny you have. So what's your plan?"

"I haven't really thought about it actually. Guess I don't have a plan."

"You can stay at my place on the islands!" His sudden out burst caused me to pretty much jump out of my seat.

"What?"

"Yeah! It wouldn't be too hard to get you to pass as my brother!"

"What about your parents? Would they actually be cool with a stranger under their roof?"

"Well, they seemed pretty cool when I told them about traveling to different worlds and being a Keyblade Master. My dad said he was proud of the man I'd become."

"Are you done patting yourself on the back already?" Harsh, I know. But he drags out everything he talks about. Xion said she came from his memories, so now I see where she gets her constant mouth from. Not that she talks too much, but when she started, she didn't stop. "Sorry. I guess I'm just on edge."

"Hey it's no big deal. So anyway, what do you think? We've got an extra room that you can use."

Part of me wanted to say yes, but I wasn't getting more than 1,000 yards away from Xion. If Xemnas came back to finish the job, I wanted to be next to her, ready to keep her safe, and to beat the living hell out of him. "I'll think about it. But until Xion wakes up, I'll make no promises."

"Excuse me," our young blonde, waitress said to us. "How's the food?"

"It's great," Sora answered happily. "Can I get the check?"

"Sora, I thought you said you were broke," I spoke. "Or was that a lie? I mean I can cover it either way."

"No no, I can pay for a couple burgers. Seriously, we'll take that check now."

"Here you go sir," she happily said handing the check to Sora.

After she left, Sora examined the check. "Hm? Hey Vanitas, there's a phone number on it."

"A what?"

He then turned it around. "See?" I immediately snatched it out of his hand. "Hey! What the heck?!"

"You can't accept her phone number."

"HUH? Why not?"

Idiot. "Because whether you know it or not, you're already spoken for." Of course I meant Kairi, but he's too clueless to figure it out. "Besides, this isn't your world. You live all the way over on Destiny Islands. I'd recommend someone that you wouldn't have to cross worlds just to see. Maybe someone like Kairi."

"K-Kairi?! Where'd that come from?! She and I are just friends!"

"You. Are. Clueless. How do you not see the way she looks at you? Heck, even after I told her about when Xion and I first kissed you know who she looked at? YOU!"

"There's no way!"

"Fine, be in denial. Besides, I see the way _you_ look at her. It's more or less the same." Sora's face was going hard core red. Okay, I really needed this. Leave it to this moron to put a smile on someone's face. I couldn't help but laugh. "When you two get together, I'm gonna laugh until I pass out, but not before tell you four little words. I told you so."

"You're delusional." Denial.

After paying the check we headed back to the hospital. I didn't wanna be away from Xion for too long. The walk was relatively short, but I felt like I was running in circles. Part of me didn't want to go back. Seeing her like that, barely holding on to life, all it did was make me feel worried, angry, and vengeful.

As we walked in through the front door, we were stopped by the doctor that practically saved Xion's life. Isaac Lawton. He looked about 21 with short black hair and green eyes. Turned out that he was Christy's twin brother. A complete opposite in personality though, and apparently a prodigy in the medical field. He was fairly quiet and knew when to keep it that way. "Hey Vanitas. I'm glad I caught you."

"Hey Isaac. What's up?"

He looked like he wasn't really wanting to talk to me. "I need to talk to you about Xion." Oh boy. I really don't like how he said that. He brought us to his office, which was secluded enough that you would think we were in another building. "Anyway, as you know, it's been nearly a month since she fell into a coma. And because my superiors are far less likely to handle this as gently as I'm trying to, I'm here to talk to you about a less favorable option." Tred carefully Isaac. You may be more tolerable than your sister, but I would probably kill you just the same. "If she doesn't wake up from this eventually, you may want to consider, the alternative."

Last straw, ripped straight from the source. I pushed him up against the wall with all my anger. He dared to even suggest this option to me?! "Whoa, Vanitas," Sora screamed, trying to get me to let go of Isaac. "What are you doing?!"

"Do you know what he's trying to suggest to me," I barked. "In simple terms, he suggesting that I pull the plug on Xion! NO! No freaking way in hell would I EVER do that! How dare you even suggest it?!" I saw the look in his eyes as he kept quiet, and I backed off. I know why he wanted to tell me, and not any others. If I heard it from anyone else, I probably would've had my hands covered in blood by now, and be on my way to a prison. "Sorry. I shouldn't have done that."

"It's okay," he replied. "I hate having to tell you this, but it's hospital protocol. I figured it's be best coming from someone you knew, rather than a stranger."

"How long do I have to make a decision?"

"Either until you run out of munny, she wakes up, or the unfortunate happens." I guess he likes dodging the not so favorable outcome.

"She'll wake up," I said reassuringly. Either she woke up, or I'd run out of munny. "Is that all you wanted to talk to me about?" He nodded his head. After which, I left to go back to Xion's room. Sora didn't follow me, and I was grateful for it. He knew when I needed to be alone. In fact, I was alone for the entire walk back to her room on the seventh floor, even in the elevator. For ten years I wanted nothing less than to be near people. I hated being alone for so long, now it was all I wanted. Walking out of the elevator I felt like I was losing hope. When I told Isaac she'd wake up, I meant it, but every second she spent in that bed made me start to doubt more and more. I looked at her through the window to see that nothing had changed.

As I walked in, I heard the beeping of her heart on the monitor. I stepped over to the window, opened it, and looked out to the ledges to see the 4 flood unversed I left here still standing guard over her. What? Did you really think I'd leave her unprotected? Screw that. She wasn't going to be left alone for one second! I pulled up my seat next to her on the right, and simply held her hand. Wait, let me guess. You're thinking I might start to tear up a bit, right? No. I don't cry for anything. The only time tears came from my eyes was when I was laughing too hard, or I was tired.

Hours passed by, and it was midnight, and I was practically falling asleep. Why can't she just wake up on stop making me worry? I got up out of my seat to go look out the window again. The unversed were all still here, as expected. I closed it and just stood next to the window and starred at the full moon shining in the sky. I started to feel like I was back in the dark realm. The feeling of loneliness in the darkness was hitting me like a train. Xion may be only 15 feet from me, but it's almost as if I _am_ alone again.

I then heard the door start to open. I looked at the clock and moved out of eye shot from the door and Xion's bed. I cocked my head to see a doctor, bringing in her medicine like usual. Technically I wasn't supposed to be in here, since closing hours were 3 hours ago. Strange though. Usually it was a nurse who brought her medicine, not a doctor. I squinted my eyes to get a better look at him. Then I noticed something. Yellow eyes!

Before he had a chance to stick that needle in Xion's IV, one of my floods came out from the ground beneath him, slashing at him. I then jumped in, keyblade in hand. "Get away from her!" I couldn't tell what he looked like, due to I surgical mask and and head piece covering his face. "Who are you? Xemnas? Xehanort? Ansem? Saix? Xigbar? Tell me!" He didn't answer me. He then threw a knife at my head. I was tired at first, but seeing someone sneaking into this room to do who knows what to Xion, got me highly awake, extremely fast. Dodging the blade however was simple. When my attention returned to the would be assailant, only to notice he was gone. I turned to the window to see it had been opened once again. I looked out the window to see him on the building across the street. He removed his disguise to reveal a young face, with silver hair that had bangs on both sides of his head, while the hair on the back of his head rose to a peak. He looked like he might've only been a few years older than me. Age 18 at best, but if he had Xehanort's yellow eyes, then that could only mean one thing. He's a vessel.

"I can see that I trained an excellent apprentice," he said. Wait, 'apprentice'? There's no way.

"Xehanort. You're from the past."

"Well, you're quite perceptive."

I wanted to jump after him. If this was Xehanort from the past then if I kill him right here and now. He'll cease to exist, and I'll stop everything he's ever done. I would've done it, but I stopped. It was only thanks to him that I existed. His actions caused not only mine, but Xion's existence as well. I take him out, and we go with him. This was so frustrating. I wanted so bad to go after him, but Xion was more important to me than some trumped up revenge that would just erase us.

"Stay the hell away from her," I threatened. He simply gave me a crooked grin, and left through a dark corridor. Xehanort's time will come, and I'll be there when it does, because he just declared all out war against me the moment he came in this room.

"Vanitas," I heard from behind me. My eyes were definitely as wide as they could be. That voice. It couldn't possibly be her. I dropped my keyblade, causing it to vanish. I then slowly started to turn around. Please tell me I wasn't just hearing things that weren't there. Let me turn around to see my fears being stomped on repeatedly. Xion was still laying there on the bed like she had been for the past month, but now her eyes were open.

"Xion..." Okay, screw it, let the eyes start to tear up a _bit_.

 **A/N: Yes this was an very fast update. When I finished the last chapter I already knew what I wanted to do with this one. What did you think of this chapter? Drop that review and let me know!**


	22. Chapter 22

CHAPTER 22: XION

You know how they say once you wake up, the nightmare is over? Well it wasn't for me. I saw terror ridden faces before I blacked out, and when I opened my eyes again, I saw Vanitas in a full on fight against someone in a doctors outfit. "Vanitas," I said weakly.

He turned around to see me lying on this bed. I would've moved to a more vertical position, but my body felt too heavy to move. Moving my limbs was like trying to move cinder blocks. "Xion," he said tearing up. Wow. Actual tears. He ran over to me as quickly as he could. "Xion, are you okay?"

"I'm fine, but I can barely move my arms. They feel like cinder blocks."

"But otherwise, you're okay?" He's sweet. I nodded as best as I could. Wait, I'm just now noticing that he's tearing up a little bit.

"Are you crying Vani?"

He very quickly averted his eyes from me. "N-No! I'm just tired! I've been up so long that my eyes just got a little watery." Aww! That's so sweet! I simply giggled at him. I couldn't see his face, but I knew it had to be blushing. "I'm just glad you're okay," he said returning his gaze. He then leaned in and placed a kiss on my lips. "As to answer the question as to why you're having trouble moving, you've kinda been in a coma for 25 days."

" _That_ long?!" Why is it that whenever I go out of it, it's for weeks?

"Yeah. Not moving for 3 week tends to cause loss of muscle."

"Smartass."

We just laughed after that. Vanitas told me about the offer Sora made to him, about being brothers. Honestly, Sora's nice and all, but I think Vani would snap and kill him after about 3 days. Just kidding. When the doctor came in, he told me I'd be in physical therapy for at least a week. Just until I was able to walk on my own again. And let me tell you, that was one of the most frustrating weeks of my life. I'm all for motivation, but hearing "C'mon you can do it! You're almost there!" constantly got on my nerves really fast. Vani's motivation was "If you don't want to hear that crap, then get up and get moving. I can't help you this time". It was a little harsh, but it was what I needed to hear, and I'd rather hear that than super happy motivation. He should be an actor, cuz at first I actually thought he was being naturally mean.

With the week done, I more or less felt like my normal self. Moving didn't feel like weight lifting anymore. "Morning," Vanitas said, coming in the room, with Sora and Kairi following. "I got you something." He lifted up a bag and pulled out SEA SALT ICE CREAM!

"YES," I exclaimed happily. "GIMME GIMME GIMME!" Call me an addict for sea salt, I don't care.

"A treat for one full week of getting back on your feet," Sora announced with a grin.

As Vani leaned in to hand over my treat, I pulled his head in and stole a kiss. "You know why I like doing that?" He shook his head to tell me no. "Because you're just like this ice cream. Salty and sweet." Vani's face instantly went red.

"I'm not sweet," he stated.

"I'm fine with your salty side too." His face was going blood red. I looked past him to see Sora and Kairi snickering by the door. "Vani, you need to learn to loosen up."

Vani just glared at me. "I guess he really hates that nickname," Kairi spoke. "Sora called him that the other day, and he practically ripped him a new one."

"He settled for putting me in an arm bar until I cried uncle," Sora said jokingly. I couldn't help but laugh.

"So, when do I get to leave this place," I asked, eating my treat. Hospital beds were extremely uncomfortable for me. Not to mention the smell of cleaner everywhere. I wanted out of here as soon as possible.

"Today," Vani answered. "And we finally got a place to crash." That's right. Vani and I had been through so much that we never got a place to stay. "I'm gonna take Sora up on his offer, and become his.." He looked like he might vomit from saying it. "His brother."

"Yeah," Sora shouted happily. "It'll be awesome! Look out for Vanitas Hikari!"

"Wait," Vani interrupted. "Your family's last name is Hikari?

"Yup!"

"I'll just stick to Vanitas Void."

"Huh? How come?"

"Hikari means light, which means your full name means Sky Light. Do you know what Vanitas means?"

"Nope. Not really."

"It's Latin, for empty." 'Empty Void?' The room went dead silent. Leave it to Vani to kill the mood. "I chose Void as my last name for a reason." He then noticed all of our grim faces. "Sorry, I guess I let my salty side get carried away." And the mood's back. We all broke out laughing.

"So, why did you decide on Void," Kairi asked. I'll admit, I wanted to know too.

"Because that's what my keyblade is called. Void Gear."

"So technically, your name should mean Empty Void Gear," Sora added.  
"Yeah, but Gear doesn't exactly fit the style."

"Anyway," I interrupted. "If you're gonna be at Sora's, where am I supposed to go?"

"I got that taken care of," Kairi answered. "You'll be staying with me. I mostly live on my own since my adopted father is the mayor, and he has to work a lot. Honestly I only see him maybe once or twice a week."

"So you and I will be roomies?"

"Uh huh! It'll be great!" Okay, I think I know how Vani feels about being under the same roof as Sora. The two of them aren't bad, but thanks to living with Vani in the dark realm, and my time in the organization, I'd gotten used to quiet surroundings. So being around constantly happy and slightly loud people, might take some getting used to.

"It sounds great Kairi. I'd love to see where you live."

"And I brought you something else," Vanitas said, holding up another bag. He reached in and pulled out the custom clothes Christy made for me. "I'll leave these here for you to change. Sora and I need to get going." He then turned his head to face Sora. "There's something I was hoping to talk to you about."

Sora looked like he was trying to avoid the subject. "Yeah. I've been looking into the matter we discussed. I might have something for you."

"What are you two talking about," I asked.

"Uh, just guy stuff," Sora answered. Vanitas avoided eye contact with me. Are they hiding something from me? "Anyway, we should get going. See ya Xion!" Sora left the room and Vanitas looked me in the eyes giving me a half-hearted smile.

Once they left, I felt a little betrayed. I thought Vani and I were past the point of secrets. "Kairi. Do you think Vanitas is hiding something from me?"

Kairi gave me a sympathetic smile. "While you were out, he went through a lot. He hardly left your side, but when he did, it was to get drunk, and then into a fight with some random jerk."

"Wait! Vanitas goes out and gets drunk?!"

"Pretty much, yeah. I mean he stopped after you woke up, but yeah, he still did it."

I couldn't believe this. He drank? My condition couldn't have been that bad, could it? I mean, to go all the way to drinking. "Kairi, how bad was my condition?"

She hesitated to look at me. "Bad. You weren't showing any signs of brain activity, or any signs of even waking up. Even cure spells weren't helping you. And the day right before you woke up, Isaac, he told Vanitas about an option that wasn't exactly favorable."

"What option?"

"To, in a way, pull the plug." My eyes must've become Frisbees. I knew what the phrase meant, and was shocked that my condition was so bad.

"Kairi, do you know what Vani and Sora are doing right now?" She shook her head. I wanted to know exactly what they were up to. I got up and put on my clothes.

"Xion, what are you doing? You're not getting discharged until later."

"I don't care. I'm not spending another second in this hospital while he's out there doing who knows what. What if he gets himself hurt?"

"He'll be fine, and he's got Sora with him."

"That's not good enough for me. What if he come's across Xemnas again?"

"Xion, he and Sora are strong enough together."

"That's why I'm worried." Kairi looked confused. "I know that together, they'll be strong enough, but every time I see that look in Vanitas's eyes, that glow, he seems to lose control of himself. Last time he charged in and got 3 fractured ribs. He hasn't been the same since we ran into... Xigbar." It suddenly hit me. "When he shot Vanitas in the back, he did something to him. What if that shot wasn't meant to hurt him?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Vanitas told me that a part of Xehanort rests within him. For all we know, the part that's in him could be Xehanort's rage. What if when Xigbar shot him, all he did was wake that part of him up?"

What I was saying was starting to sink into Kairi. "Then Xehanort's making him go insane whenever he fights."

"Which is exactly why I _have_ to go find him."

"Well you're not going alone." I nodded, accepting her obvious offer to come with me. "There's just one problem. We have absolutely no idea where they are, or where they're going."

I opened the door and stopped for a second. I then turned my head towards Kairi. "We'll improvise." I walked out and Kairi followed. We walked down the hall as quickly as possible, heading towards the elevator.

"Hey you," a security guard called. "Stop! You haven't been discharged yet!" I obviously didn't stop.

"Run," I told Kairi. We ran for it. The elevator was a little out of the question now that we were being chased. So we took the next best option. The stairwell, where 2 more guards were waiting for us on the lower floors. "We won't make it to the bottom."

"So what now?" I grabbed her arm, and jumped. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"

As the ground got closer I put my hand out and called forth a dark corridor. _Really_ glad to know that I can still do that. "HANG ON!" We went through the darkness, and popped out the other side, in Twilight Town, going upwards towards the top of the station tower. We were moving so fast that our momentum carried us until we landed right on the edge of the building.

Kairi looked absolutely stunned. "How. Did you. Do that."

I just grinned. "I'm just that good."

 **A/N: So I am working on what will, hopefully, be a very long chapter. So it might be a while before the next update. Two weeks max. Anyway, I'm hoping you all liked this chapter. Light up that review box and let me know what you thought!**


	23. Chapter 23

CHAPTER 23: VANITAS

I hated not telling Xion what I was doing, but she just woke up a week ago, and is still not back at her physical peak. I didn't want her anywhere near any possible danger like that ever again. "So, where are we going," I asked Sora. I looked out at the vast ocean of space as we flew through it in his ship, called the gummi ship. Which sounds completely ridiculous to me.

"Master Yensid told me that since Xehanort wants to start the Keyblade war, it's best to search where it will most likely take place," he answered. I knew exactly where he was talking about. My birthplace. As well as the place where I was defeated ten years ago.

"The Keyblade Graveyard." Sora nodded. "I'll be honest, I never wanted to go back to that place again." That's where Xehanort trained me to be ruthless. All I'll say is, that those are some bad memories. "I doubt he'll make it so obvious. He's a strategist by nature, so he won't be just sitting around waiting for us to show up in the most obvious place imaginable. Trust me, I know him."

"Still, it might have a clue." I gave up on trying to convince him to change coarse. He was determined to see the graveyard. "So you've been there before?"

"Yeah, quite a few times."

"What's it like there?"

I went silent. In a way, that place was just as bad, if not worse than, the dark realm. The only real difference was the keyblades of fallen wielders. "Let's just say that it's not much of a lively place."

"Man, why do you alway gotta act so cryptic? Seriously, I'm starting to wonder what Xion sees in you."

"I could say something similar to you about your relationship with a certain redhead."

Sora's face instantly went red. "I told you, she and I are just friends! There's no relationship between us!"

"You. Are. Blind."

The rest of the trip there was fairly uneventful. For some reason I felt like the Graveyard was calling me to it. My instinct was too abandon this lead Sora may have had. To run the other way, but my desire to get revenge, well it was even stronger. Xion didn't need to see that side of me, and I won't let her. Before long the world had finally come into view. Flashes of memory came rushing back. Endless hours of training I had to endure. Sometime I trained for days without realizing it. Whenever I was allowed to sleep, I almost immediately passed out, but woke up only about two hours later. found myself lost in these memories. So much so that I thought I was reliving them.

"VANITAS," Sora screamed, snapping me out of the memories. "You coming?"

"Uh, yeah."

He took one step outside and halted. "Wait, _this_ is the Keyblade Graveyard?" He turned to me and I nodded. "I've been here once before." Wait he's been _here_ before? "A little over a month ago, I was here, and I encountered a suit of armor with a Keyblade, which then attack me, Donald, and Goofy." A suit of armor? Could he be talking about Ventus, Terra, or Aqua?

No. Not Aqua. She defeated me, so she wouldn't be stuck here, and Ventus sought refuge in Sora's heart. The only person left, that I could think of, would be Terra, but Xehanort stole his body. "Did you by chance, figure out who was in that armor?"

"No," he shrugged. "But whoever it was thought I was Xehanort, and let me tell you, they seem to have a much bigger grudge with him than you do." Sounds like some serious anger problems then. But the only other person I could see having a grudge with him, besides the other three, is their master, Eraqus. The only problem is, he's dead. So then who else could hate him as much as I do, if not more than I do? "Can you take me to it, if it's still there?"

"Sure, but I don't know exactly where to go. I came here by accident, through a portal. I left through that portal after that. Didn't want to test my luck and risk death twice in one day." Fair enough.

"Then forget I asked. Let's get back on point. Do you really think there's a lead to Xehanort or Xemnas around here?"

"That's kinda why I need you here. You know Xehanort better than anyone of us, so you have the best chance of finding a clue."

He had a point. Sora had experience with Xehanort, and so did Riku, but not in the same way that I did. "Fair enough. In that case why don't we split up and cover more ground?"

"You sure?" I nodded. I could feel my agitation rising every second that I was here. For the time, being alone felt like the right thing to do. "Okay. Here." He tossed me a small device. "It's a two way radio. It's range is exactly 2.5 miles. Any farther than that and we won't be able to communicate with each other."

"Got it." I put the small radio in my ear and walked away. After walking on my own for about 30 minutes, I finally felt a little at ease. The area I wondered off into was one that I didn't recognize, so for such a simple reason, it felt like I wasn't in the forsaken graveyard anymore. I felt like peace had finally grabbed ahold of me. The place truly felt more or less deserted. Funny how irony works. I spent ten years wanting to rid myself of the feeling of solitude, and now I'm letting it take over again.

As I kept walking I came across a cave I'd definitely never encountered on this world before, with a small light coming from inside of it. "Vanitas," I heard Sora call over the earpiece.

"Yeah," I responded.

"You find anything yet?"

"No," I lied. "Nothing at all. I'll radio in the second I do."

"Okay."

I entered the cave cautiously, looking for any sort of possible danger. Nothing seemed out of order, as far as caves go. I wanted to know where that light at the end was coming from. The closer I got, the brighter the light. I actually had to called forth my helmet to block out some of it. Before I knew it, I was at the end of the tunnel. What I saw was unbelievable.

A whole subterranean area, with a small castle dead in the middle. It looked worn down and ready to fall apart. I removed my helmet since I didn't need it to block off the artificial light in the area. Letting my curiosity take over, I entered the castle. The foyer was surprisingly huge compared to what I thought it would be. It was, structurally speaking, in absolute perfect symmetry with a staircase leading up to the second floor, branching off into the two different wings. On the walls were paintings of young and old people, each one with their own unique Keyblade. This place, I had a feeling that this place may have been a home to a family of Keybladers once before. I wandered into the room on the left, and it turned out to look like some kind of library/study. Everything was covered in dust, even more than the foyer.

I walked around until my foot hit something. I looked down to see a small book. I picked it up and blew off the dust. This thing hadn't been touched in years. I opened it about halfway to see hand written notes.

' _The war is getting worse now. It's been a year and it doesn't look like it'll be ending anytime soon. Aunt and Uncle were both lost in the battle yesterday, and now brother wants to go out there, Keyblade in hand, and fight with everyone else. Of course Mother and Father won't let him leave and commit practical suicide. As his older sister I'm already stressed enough about the idea of the war going on out there, so trying to keep him out of it isn't helping me. I don't even know why I'm still writing in this book anymore. There's a war going on over my head, and I'm still writing like nothing's even happening. Does this make me a horrible person? Stupid question. My parents won't allow me or my brother to go out there, and in a way, I'm glad for it. I realize I've never thought about what I'll do once the war's over. Maybe I'll~~~~~~~~~~~~~'._

That was the end of the entry. I flipped to the next page, but every page after that was blank. Every page before that was full of writing. It was easy for me to conclude that every entry in this book was related to the Keyblade War. Whoever this belonged to was probably killed on the very day this entry was made. I turned to the inside of the front cover to see a name. 'Mira'.

I took a closer look at everything around me. When I walked in, I thought the place was just abandoned and the doors were left open. Looking closer at them, I noticed that they were actually kicked in. That book spoke of times when this land used to be peaceful, and flourishing with life. Once the war began, all that stuff started to disappear. Made me wonder what the family that lived here was like. For all I knew, they were peaceful people, but war destroys peace.

Xehanort wanted to repeat these events. Repeat the war that destroyed so many lives. And from what I can tell, when it all goes down, I'll be there, at Ground Zero. "So, learning about the past I see," said an old voice from behind me at the top of the stairs. That voice was too familiar. I felt fear choking me with every breathe I tried to take. I heard the footsteps of the man behind me getting closer as he descended down the stairs. I wanted to run like hell. I turned my head to see the old man in his black trench coat, with his white beard, and piercing yellow eyes.

"Xehanort."

"Well, you certainly seem to be in good shape." Mocking me?! Who the hell does he think he is?! "As I understand it, you've been spending quite a bit of time with people. One of which you seem to have a very close bond with."

"Don't talk about her!" Xehanort just smirked at me. "You talk about the war like it's some magical mystery, but look around here! I don't see greatness! All I see are the lives that were destroyed, and you wanna bring something like that back into existence?! For what purpose?! Answers?!"

"Vanitas, the Keyblade War still has many unknown secrets to it. It is my destiny to unlock those secrets. Just as it is your destiny to rejoin me."

"REJOIN YOU?! YOU'RE EVEN MORE DELUSIONAL THAN I THOUGHT!"

"You'll be a seeker, regardless of how much you hate me."

I could feel my anger growing each second. I'd been holding it in, trying desperately not to lose my head, but you know what, I'm tired of holding back. I called my Void Gear and charged at Xehanort. I brought my blade down towards his head, but he deflected it with one swing of his Foreteller Keyblade. That didn't stop me though, I kept my rush of attacks going. I let my rage finally have its day. I kept fighting fighting like I wanted. I wasn't stopping. I couldn't stop now. I didn't want to stop fighting. Because of him, I suffered for so long. Because of him, Xion was in a coma. Because of him, so many people were hurt.

He hadn't thrown a single attack towards my direction. I on the other hand had, but I made absolutely no connection with anything other than his keyblade. This was ridiculous. I should've gotten at least on hit on him. "Out of breathe are we," he mocked.

"Shut up!" I swung at him again and he just stepped out of the way. He took a literal stab at me, but he wasn't piercing my clothes. I slashed towards his face and missed again. "I will kill you for everything you've ever done!"

"As if," I heard being said from up the stairs. You gotta be kidding me. I looked up to see Braig standing there with 4 other figures in black coats. The one standing on his left revealed the face I saw in Xion's hospital room a week ago. He stood there smirking at me, as if to push me even further into my hatred. On Braig's right, I recognized the scent as the man that helped him chase Xion and I. That had to be that Saix guy. So who were the other two figures? Could one of them be Xemnas?

"You seem to be outnumbered Vantas," Xehanort commented.

"Just means I'll have to kill them too," I responded. But that younger version of Xehanort, I couldn't risk killing him. Doesn't mean I can't beat the living crap out of him. "If this is all you got, then you really have no chance of victory against everyone else." I swing my blade at him again, but it was blocked, not by his keyblade, but by another weapon. Xemnas's Ethereal blades. He was close enough to land a fatal blow on me if he wanted to. So close that I could see his yellow eyes glaring at me under his hood. Forget Xehanort. I wanted Xemnas in the ground more than him anyway. I began my assault on Xemnas.

Amidst the chaos of the battle he managed to scratch my face a few times, leaving small cuts with blood dripping from them. Time after time he hit my clothes, but naturally I was more prepared than last time. Xemnas brought his right blade in for a side attack, and I stopped it with my left arm. I was still wearing the clothes Christy made for me, but I was also wearing some custom made armor underneath. "Surprised Xemnas," I mocked. "You see, I learn from my battles. My clothes can't be cut, but they can't stop attacks like your blades without allowing some damage through." I pulled my left sleeve to reveal a small part of the armor that protected my body. "Mythril Armor, courtesy of the same person that made these awesome clothes. Light weight, so they don't slow me down." With him still processing the new found leverage I had, I took the opportunity to flip backwards, kicking him in the face as I did.

When I landed I noticed Xehanort sitting on the stairs next to his other dark seekers. "Impressive Vanitas," he complimented. "You've clearly learned quite a bit since the last time I saw you."

"Bite me old man. I'm not your puppet anymore. I'm finally free from you. I won't let you drag me back into the darkness."

"You say that even as you continue to use a dark Keyblade?"

I went silent for a moment. It's true that the Void Gear is a Keyblade that is part of the dark realm. "As much as I hate to admit it, you're right. I am still in the darkness." I then raised my blade towards him. "But now it's different. Now I've got friends, and someone I care about. If giving in means I lose them forever, then I'd rather die."

"Then die you shall," Xemnas spoke. "But not by the hands of the dark seekers. The light guardians will take care of that when the time comes."

Wow. They're really set on the idea of making me a seeker of darkness. "As if they'd attack me. They're my friends. You on the other hand, I have no problem putting in the ground."

Xemnas then charged at me and grabbed me by the throat. "You'll need to be rehabilitated before you join up with us." Next thing I knew, I felt massive jolts of electricity running through my body. The pain was unbelievable. Everything in my field of vision was starting to blur, until the next thing I knew, I was heading towards the ground. Xemnas lost his grip on me, not because he let me go, but because he was attacked by someone with silver hair and a keyblade.

"Riku," I said weakly.

"Are you okay," Riku asked me.

"Ugh... I've been better."

"Well, this is unexpected," said one of the hooded figures. He then removed his hood to show a face similar to Xemnas.

"Ansem," Riku said.

"Enough," Xehanort spoke. "If he's here, then that means it won't be long until their reinforcements show, and our numbers are not yet ready."

"Running away Xehanort," I questioned.

"No my young apprentice. I'm simply biding my time." They then vanished.

"Good timing Riku. How'd you find me?"

"I've been looking for clues related to Terra, Aqua, and Ventus with the King in this world. We split up and I just happened to come across this place."

"Well, I came here looking for anything that would lead me to Xemnas or Xehanort. Guess I found exactly what I was looking for."

We met up with Sora and the King after that very painful experience. Sora really let me have an ear full for going off on my own without waiting for him. Said something about how brothers should always be there having each others backs. We're not even technically brothers yet and he's already on my nerves.

"What's up with that book you're carrying with you," Sora asked, referencing to Mira's journal.

"It's uh... It's a few lessons of the past." This book held the experience of one person from the beginning of the war until their final day. I'm gonna learn everything about that war. I'm gonna do everything I can to protect Xion and my friends from it, or die trying.

 **A/N: I AM SO SORRY FOR THE LATE UPDATE! My original computer crashed on me, so I had to buy a new one. Anyway, I hope this chapter was to your liking my awesome readers! As always feel free to drop a review!**


	24. Chapter 24

CHAPTER 24: XION

As smart as I am, running out of a hospital, when I was about to be discharged anyway, to chase after Vanitas, after he'd most likely left Radiant Garden and having absolutely no idea where he was, was a pretty stupid move on my part. As I mentally slapped myself in the face, I looked out to the horizon to see the beautiful sunset that I'd seen so many times before with Roxas and Axel. I'd really missed the view, as well as those two. I got Axel back, but Roxas is gone. I suddenly found myself remembering the last time I was on this tower with him. That may have been my most painful memory of all time.

"XION," Kairi screamed, snapping me out of my daze. "Are you okay?" I hadn't noticed but apparently I was crying.

"I'm sorry," I apologized. "I have a lot of memories of this place. Even though it's not where I come from, this place still feels like home to me. Sounds kinda dumb huh?"

"Not at all. I feel the same way about the islands. I was born in Radiant Garden, but the islands are my real home. It's where everything I have is."

Kairi and I had more in common with each other than I thought we would. We don't just look alike, we have similar backgrounds. And we both have feelings for spiky headed guys. "Hey Kairi. How long have you been in love with Sora?"

Kairi's face instantly turned bright red. "What?! I-I'm not in love with Sora! He's my best friend."

I just gave her a look saying that she wasn't fooling me. "Kairi, I'm not blind. I see the way you look at him when you think no one's looking. Actually he looks at you the same way."

"Really?!" Excited much? "I-I mean, really?" Now she's trying to play it off. "It's that obvious huh?"

"At least you'll admit it. Vani told me that Sora denies any relationship between you two." The look of disappointment settled on her face. "But you know how hopeless he can be, especially when it comes to women." She and I just started laughing. In just one week she'd become one of my closest friends, next to Roxas and Axel of course. As our laughing started to die down, Vani's disappearance re-entered my mind. "Kairi, I need to find Vanitas. I need to find out for sure what's wrong with him. But where do I even start looking?" Despair was starting to take over.

"I think I know someone who can point you in the right direction. Have you ever heard of Master Yensid?"

"What's a Yensid?"

"Not what, who. He used to be a keyblade master, and he's got an extensive knowledge of pretty much everything. Maybe he'll have an answer."

"That's great! Where is he?"

"Well actually there's a train in the station here that can take us. Sora showed it to me while you were out for a month. We spent a few hours on that train just sitting there and talking to each other." While she blabbed on about her _magical_ train ride with Sora, she eventually noticed me giving her the same look from earlier. "But it was completely normal for two friends."

"Kairi, just stop."

"Anyway, back to my point. He should be able to help you, ya know, once we get down from here."

"Not the biggest fan of heights?" She shook her head, telling me no. "C'mon, the stairwell's over here." The train ride did take a few hours, but they were surprisingly peaceful. I may have been made of Kairi's memories, but that didn't mean I knew everything about her. Listening to the stories about Sora, Riku, and herself felt so relaxing.

"And after I went into the old caves," she continued, "I noticed the drawings we made of each other, and his was giving mine a paopu fruit."

"KAIRI," I screamed shaking her. "THAT'S YOUR PROOF RIGHT THERE!"

"I-GET-IT! NOW-PLEASE-STOP-SHAKING-ME!" I let go of her giggling.

"I'm sorry. I couldn't help myself." Suddenly the train came to a stop. "Why are we stopping? Are we here?"

"Yeah, this is the place." I stepped out of the train and starred in awe at the magnificent tower. It radiated with a form of mystical power.

"This place is unbelievable." The walk up the stairs was even more unbelievable. Walking through the corridors was like walking into other worlds. This place didn't just radiate mystical power, it was like it was _made_ of mystical power. "So, this Yensid guy. You said he used to be a keyblade master. Why isn't he anymore?"

"He does't like to talk about it," Kairi replied. "Personally I don't blame him. Being a keyblader is hard enough as it is. Being a master has to take its toll." The rest of the walk up the stairs was fairly quiet. I didn't want to ask about this Yensid anymore. From everything I've already heard about him it seems like just being in his presence will be terrifying. "Okay, here we are. You ready to meet him?" I nodded my head and she opened the door. "Master Yensid, I've brought a friend with me. This is Xion, and we were hoping-"

I was confused as to why Kairi silenced herself. I looked over her should to see three familiar young men. Vanitas, Sora, and Riku. "Vanitas?"

"Xion," he said in surprise. "What are you doing here?"

"I should be asking you the same thing."

"Hey, I'm not the one who should still be in the hospital."

Our conversation was cut by the sound of a man clearing his throat. This must of been him. He was an older ma in a blue robe with a long gray beard and a pointy hat with a star and moon pattern. "So, you are Xion," he guessed. I nodded my head and bowed. It seemed like the respectable thing to do. "Good. Then Sora, Riku, and Kairi, if you would please give Vanitas Xion and myself the room." The three of them complied without question. "Now then, Vanitas and Xion, there is something the three of us must discus." Silence filled the room as we waited for him to continue. "Master Xehanort is, as you know, a devious tactician that can predict anything we throw at him, except for you two. Xion, I have been informed of your past by Sora, which gives us a tactical advantage."

"Your point," Vanitas questioned, clearly irritated.

"She's an anomaly, like yourself."

"And what would you have us do," I asked.

"I need the two of you, along with Riku and Mickey, to help free Aqua from the realm of darkness," he answered.

"Aqua's in the dark realm," Vanitas questioned with shock. "Since when?!"

"For the past ten years, she has wandered through the realm. 2 years ago the king went in there to find her, without knowing the risk, but he was unable to find her. Now we have a better understanding of the dangers of that realm, which is why I need you, Vanitas, to go-"

"No way in hell," Vanitas interrupted. "I spent ten years in that hell, and you want me to go back?! It was a miracle that we got out at all!"

"Vanitas," I said softly. He looked at me with concern. I could tell that he was more concerned with me going back. "I'm going with or without you." He looked shocked that I would willingly volunteer to go back to the dark realm. "I wanna do what I can to help."

His expression darkened. "Well you're not going there without me."

"Which is why I want both of you to head to a special place before you head there," Yensid continued. "While you two are away Riku and Mickey will be gathering supplies for your journey."

"And exactly where are you sending us," I asked.

"It's a place called the library of _X_ ," he answered. At first I though he meant key, until I remembered how Vani told me about the _X_ -Blade. "It is one of the seven seven libraries of letters. _X_ , death, and so on. They have knowledge of things even I don't have. For example, the dark realm."

"Which means we might find a way to escape the realm once we've found Aqua," Vanitas concluded. Master Yensid nodded his head. "But how come I've never heard of this place before?"

"Because only a handful of masters, such as myself, know that the libraries exist," he explained. "Even fewer know the locations of even one. And only the seven keyblade guardians of the libraries know the locations of all of them."

"So how do we get there," I asked.

"I will have the coordinates to the library set into the gummi ship's computer," Yensid answered. "Once you've obtained the information you need, you shall return here and join Riku and Mickey to begin your mission into the dark realm."

It felt strange. It felt like I was back in the organization, getting a mission briefing. The only difference was that Roxas wasn't here, and I didn't have to listen to Saix. "Then I guess Vani and I should get going then?" Yensid nodded his head. Vani and I bowed our heads and turned to leave. Walking back down the tower felt like I was being tortured. I wanted to ask where Vanitas went after leaving the hospital, but I kept myself restrained. He had to be nervous about this mission. This person was his enemy all those years ago. She never saw his face, but she did fight him, hear him, and knows his name.

"I'm completely screwed," he spoke, interrupting the silence. "I have no idea how she'll react to me just standing in front of her." I wanted to comfort him, but I didn't know what to say. I took his hand in mine, feeling the warmth coming from him. He slightly squeezed mine hand. "Thanks for being there for me Xion." I didn't say a word. I just smiled warmly at him.

All this time I've been with him, I never really noticed just how much he actually needed me until now. I was holding him together, not the other way around. I reached over and kissed him on the cheek, causing a small smile to spread across his face. We walked out the front door to see the gummi ship, Sora once told me about, sitting there and waiting to take us to the library.

All this time I spent traveling to different worlds, I never once saw the vastness of space. Just dark corridors leading me to my destinations. But what I saw was truly incredible. So many worlds passing us by through the stars. "It beautiful, isn't it," Vani asked me. I simply nodded my head while walking towards the side of the cockpit I was on. "Tens years ago I just passed from world to world, never really allowing the vast greatness of the universe to settle within me. I really missed out."

I wanted to keep starring out to space, but I figured since we were stuck together in this ship, now was as good a time as any to start asking questions. "Vani? Where did you go?"

His face fell into a state of grimness. Was he even going to tell me? "Sora said he might have a lead on the whereabouts of Xemnas and Xehanort, at the Keyblade Graveyard." Okay, so he did answer me. "I went looking for them, so that I could end them. I knew you wouldn't approve of my actions, which is why I didn't tell you." He was right. I didn't want him doing any of this. If my theory about Xehanort's heart making him different was right, then I didn't want him anywhere near them.

"Did you find them?"

Silence continued to fill the ship. "Yes." Fear struck me. Did that part of him make him do something he'd regret? "But they had me outnumbered and they escaped. I wasn't strong enough to beat them." He then reached into a nearby compartment and pulled out a fairly dusty book. "This is a personal journal of events during the first keyblade war. Judging by the way that the last entry ended, the writer didn't survive it. I took it so that I can learn as much about the war as possible." I couldn't believe what I was hearing. He actually went up against Xemnas and Xehanort, and risked his life for some vendetta? "And I figured out what Xehanort really wants from me." On top of everything else, what could possibly be worse? "He wants to make me his thirteenth dark vessel." Oh, of course!

"Well that's not gonna happen! He'll have to go through me first!"

Vani then pulled me into a tight hug. "Xion. After reading the entries from that book, I don't want you anywhere near this fight. The war isn't some street fight. It's ruined billions of lives. People died and their loved ones suffered more than anyone else. I don't want that for you."

"Vani, I don't wanna hear it." The look of shock on his face would've been priceless if not for the seriousness of the conversation. "I make my own choices, and for better or worse, you're stuck with me through this."

"Ugh... You're unbelievable. How am I supposed to stop you when you won't even listen?"

"You can't."

After our heart to, uh, non-heart, we just sat together in silence. The rest of our ride lasted for about two hours. When we finally arrived at our destination I starred in complete awe at the magnificent castle that was apparently the library. It appeared to have at least eight levels and at each window was a guard with what looked like very powerful firearms. From just the front, I could tell that there was at least 50 guards. "That's a lot of security for just the front. Makes me wonder what the other sides and the inside is like," Vani said. "We'd better be careful. We've got no idea what they might do once we show up."

He was way right . The second we landed we were instantly surrounded by 13 men in black armor and helmets. "Freeze," one of them screamed. Vanitas and I instinctively summoned our keyblades. What? Hey have someone point a gun at you and see what you do then. "Put the weapons down!"

"HOLD YOUR FIRE," screamed a boy who looked just a little older than Vanitas. He had short straight brown hair, and brown eyes. He wore a black zip up hoodie, a red shirt, blue jeans, and white shoes. And most of all, he was carrying a four foot, completely black keyblade in his left hand. The guard looked basic enough but the teeth looked like a sharp hook that you definitely didn't wanna get caught in. Without question, the guards lowered their weapons and returned to their posts. "Sorry about that. These people aren't used to people showing up unannounced. It's an honor to have you hear. Not too often that Master Yensid sends two young keybladers to the library."

"Wait, he told you we were coming," Vanitas asked.

"Nope."

"Then how'd you know we were coming," I asked.

"This library has everything regarding this quadrants history all the way to right about now."

"In English please," Vani commented irritably.

"Meaning that everything that ever happens in this part of the universe is documented instantly. I just happened to be reading up when an entry regarding you two being sent here popped up."

"You're the guardian of this place aren't you," I guessed. He nodded.

"Anyway, we should get down to business. You're here for the info on the dark realm right? I can lead you there. C'mon."

"By the way, who are you," Vani asked.

"Oh yeah, that's right. I never introduced myself." He turned around and set his keyblade on his left shoulder. "Keyblade master and Library of _X_ guardian. The name's Kedrex."

 **A/N: I know it's been a very long time since the last chapter. I'm sorry, I've just been very busy. Don't worry about my character playing a big part, it's only temporary. Anyway what did you think of the chapter? Feel free to drop a review!**

 **And here's a link to my personal fanfic facebook page. Any art I have trouble describing, like the Kedrex keyblade, will be posted there :** Kedrexfanfictions/

 **THANK YOU TO ALL THE READERS WHO HAVEN'T GIVEN UP ON ME!**


	25. Chapter 25

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CHAPTER 25: VANITAS

Kedrex huh? Talk about an interesting name. Then again, who am to talk? "So, Kedrex," I spoke, "what exactly can you tell us about the dark realm?"

"Pretty much everything there is or isn't to tell," he answered. While we walked he didn't even turn his head to face us as he talked. While he walked ahead of us I observed his attire. His style was very similar to my own, but without any symbols on his, and he had his keyblade sheathed on his back. We walked past many book shelves along the way. Each of them had a giant letter on them, Z through N. We passed up to the next floor where the letters were organized from M to A.

"So how come you're carrying your keyblade on your back? Why not send it away for later?"

He actually stopped and turned his head this time with a grin plastered on his face. "Why be like every other keyblader? Every master does that, and it's boring. By carrying mine on my back, I stand out more as a slightly more unique keyblade master. As if being left handed wasn't enough." Left handed? That's right. Not many keybladers are left handed, and the ones that are usually have unique fighting styles. Maybe he'd be a good- "Don't even think about it Vanitas. I'm not gonna fight you." Wait, how did he know what I was thinking? "You have a bad habit of challenging people with power that's either equal or greater than your own." He then raised his right arm and pulled the sleave to reveal a familiar symbol. The symbol of keybladers from the land of departure. Ventus wore the same symbol over his chest. Only Kedrex's was a black tattoo.

"What's that mark on your arm," Xion asked.

"This is the mark of the guardians. We adopted the symbol from the land of departure, where many keybladers trained in the past. Sadly that land is lost to all of us. The other guardians have tattoos like this, but in different colors. Meaning basically, I'd be too much for you Vanitas."

I wasn't convinced. The guy didn't look much older than myself, plus there was no way he could really be as strong as me. At least I thought so, until he suddenly vanished right in front of me. "Where'd he go?" My question was answered by someone tapping me on my shoulder. I turned around to see him smirking at me. "How did you-"

"Each guardian has two unique abilities that help us in battle. They go far beyond the abilities of normal master powers. Mine are extreme speed and strength." He's got that kind of power? Guardians must be tough if they have this kind of power.

This started to make me think. Maybe we could convince him to help us. "Hey Kedrex. Since you seem to have a mass knowledge as well as such great power-"

"No." His smirk vanished into a serious frown. Was he just gonna keep interrupting me? "As much as I'd like to help you, I can't leave this place. That mark on my arm does more than show my status as guardian, it also prevents me from moving too far from the library. The only conditions that allow me to leave are if sensitive documents are stolen, or if it's the only way to secure the library's safety, or when I finally pass the mantle of guardian to someone else. Each outcome is as unlikely as the next."

"Dude, that sucks," I commented. I really thought he could be of use to us. "Anyway, back to the task at hand. The dark realm. We need a way out of the dark realm once we enter, and we're not even sure how we got out the first time." He looked like he was pondering over my problem.

"Well that's a fairly long explanation. The shortest version is that you have to be a being balanced in light and darkness." Oh well that explains everything! "Let me put it this way. If some doesn't have a pure balance of light and darkness within you, then it's impossible to escape. And I mean a 50-50 light and dark balance."

"That's why Vani couldn't escape," Xion guessed aloud.

"Not just him, but you as well." And now both Xion and I were confused. "Xion, the reason why Roxas was being drained was because he fit this profile of balance. You on the other hand are made entirely out of light based memories. Since you have your connection with Sora and no darkness of your own to balance yourself out, you took the only source you could find, Roxas. As a result, you drained his darkness, weakening him in the process."

"So why isn't Vanitas being effected like Roxas?"

"Because I'm in the same box as you," I concluded. It was starting to make sense. "You weren't siphoning my powers. You were exchanging them. Trading half of my darkness, for half of your light."

"Give the man a prize," Kedrex cheered. "He's figured it out."

"What about the corridor of light we saw? Why did it wait 3 weeks to show up then?"

"Because neither of you had actually fully balanced out your light and darkness. Riku had though."

How in the world does he know all this? It made absolutely no sense. "How much of history do these books record," I asked.

"Well, all of it. The volumes vary on age of the person. For example, you, Vanitas,are currently working on your seventeenth volume. Xion would be on her second. I myself am working on my nineteenth. These volumes only cease to be written once someone's life has ended."

"And Aqua's story," I asked.

"Look at the book shelf behind you." I turned to see the shelf with the letter A on it. In the middle I noticed a very familiar name on many books, 'AQUA'. "Her story continues to be written, even now. When Xehanort took Terra's body as a vessel, he and Aqua battled one another. During the fight a portal into the deepest reaches of the dark realm, which he fell through. He would've stayed there if Aqua had not risked her life to save Terra. She took his place in the dark realm." My guilt began to eat away at me. If I hadn't helped Xehanort in the first place things could've turned out much different. "Which reminds me, when you go to save Aqua, you should bring plenty of food and fresh water. Unlike you she hasn't found food in the last ten years."

"I have a question," Xion spoke up. "Vani and I. You said we were siphoning darkness and light from each other until we balanced out. Does this mean that we're both capable of escaping the dark realm now?"

"Well, yes. At least you are now. During the past month Vanitas spent so much time by you that the exchange was completed. This is why, when you were imprisoned by Clu, you were un able to summon your keyblade. In the dark realm you were unable of losing any light, so when you left you were still imbalanced. You two continued to balance each other out, it just took longer than it would've if you were to have stayed in the dark realm."

"How did we ended up in Radiant Garden after leaving the dark realm? When Riku and Sora left they ended up back on their island. So why didn't we go there too?"

"The corridor of light that opened was very unique. It was designed to take a person to the world they felt the most attachment to. For Sora and Riku, the islands fit that description. For Vanitas, that was Radiant Garden. You would've been sent to Twilight Town if you and Vanitas hadn't been holding hands when he passed through."

"How exactly do you know all of this?"

"When I saw that you two were coming, I read through the most recent volumes of you two. After all, I did have two hours to kill while I waited for you. I normally don't read other people's volumes unless they're approaching the library. I see it as an invasion of privacy."

I had no reason to doubt him. So far everything he said came with proof and made complete sense. Wait. Books of everyone in this part of the universe are kept here, including Xehanort. "Kedrex, can I see one of these books?" He shook his head, answering no to my question. "But, why?"

"I'm sorry, but it's forbidden. Only the guardians are aloud access to those particular books. I can't just let you look at them while you're near me." I wanted to be mad, but he had a job to do and I couldn't be mad at him for it. "So while Xion and go look at the info on the dark realm that you specifically need, don't you dare go looking at Xehanort's most recent volumes." He walked away with a soft smile on his face, and Xion followed him. Could he be anymore obvious?

As soon as he was gone I rushed back to the X section. Xehanort's 65th volume. I opened it up and began reading the most recent entry. From what I could tell, the volume was from Xehanort's perspective. _Vanitas is becoming a problem now. He won't willingly be a part of this now. So long as he has something worth fighting for, like that unusual girl, he'll defy me to the very end. I must remove this distraction or find a way to make him accept. He was not supposed to gain an attachment to something. Should he give into despair, he will undoubtedly be distracted enough to be made into a vessel. Finding out that he was alive, after all this time, was quite a surprise. There's no need to go after Sora anymore._

I could feel my blood boiling at this point. I knew exactly what he meant by throwing me into despair. Killing Xion. _But this Xion that he is so infatuated with, who is she? None of the other seekers seem to know anything about her. She is an anomaly. The only way to know anything about her is to go to the library of_ X _. It will have all the information I'll need about her. For so many years I have searched for anything that could lead me to the library, and finally I have found a way. I do feel sorry for the young keyblader I had to torture, but it was necessary to find the location of the library. In fact I can see it right now. At long last I have found-_

I immediately dropped the book and looked out a nearby window to the night sky. What I saw looked like a lit getting bigger, or actually closer. He was coming. I ran back up the stairs to find Kedrex and Xion. "Guys," I screamed as I ran. I got up to the next floor when I saw the two of them coming down the stairs from the next floor. "Xehanort's on his way here! He's almost here!"

Kedrex didn't waste any time running to a nearby P.A. system. "Everyone to your battle stations! Unknown number of hostiles approaching the library! Arm up! They are to be considered to each be armed with keyblades and extremely dangerous!" He then turned his attention to us. "What did he want?"

I turned my attention to Xion. "He wants all the information on you, to use against me."

"Good," she said. _GOOD?_ "We know what his target is now. So let's get give it to him."

"A trap," Kedrex guessed. "We know what he's coming for, so we set a trap." It made sense. With Kedrex, there was no way we'd lose. "You two are the last line of defense. You work on setting a trap while I try to stop him. Hide the books and get ready."

"Wait. You're not staying?"

"My men can only delay Xehanort for a short time. If he's brought the seekers with him, then I'm the only one who can delay them long enough to buy you some time."

"But-"

"Don't argue with me Vanitas!"

The look in his eyes was dead seriousness. A few minutes ago he seemed like some happy go lucky guy, but now he looked like the angel of raging death in human form. Without another word he jumped right out the window, keyblade in hand. I looked to Xion expecting to see a worried look on her face, but all I saw was here coming up the stairs holding two books with her name on each. "So what's the plan," she asked. Xehanort had no idea that we were here, which gave us an advantage.

"Xehanort taught me tons of trap magic spells. Ones that he himself developed. Since he doesn't know we're waiting for him..."

"He won't be expecting his own traps to be set up against him."

"Exactly. Head upstairs and I'll get the traps set."

Setting them up was easy enough. The second he takes a few steps in this corridor he'll be shot with dark thundaga, dark firaga, and dark everything. And that's just the first set. I hid myself above the entryway waiting for him to step through. Before long I saw two shadows coming through the door. The first person I saw was Xehanort, or at least the top of his head. "This is quite the collection of information," he spoke. He started taking another step forward. One more and he'll trigger the trap. Right before he took that last step a hooded figure grabbed him by his right shoulder with his left hand. His right side remained in the entryway. "What's wrong?" The hooded figure then pulled their right hand forward, dragging a blood covered and unconscious Kedrex with him.

What the figure did next shocked me, and tested my resolve and new way of life. The figure tossed Kedrex into the middle of the room. "NO," I screamed as I jumped down to save him. Luckily he was still in the air when I caught him. But catching him didn't stop gravity from dragging us back to the ground. As we hit the ground I cast a Reflect spell around the two of us. The attacks from traps smashed into the shield like a hurricane of destruction. It was becoming too much. The spell wasn't going to hold long enough. **CRACK!** What remained of the traps attacked both Kedrex and I. The force of the impact ended up smashing both of us into the far wall across the room. My vision was too distorted to make out anything after that. Before I knew it, everything faded to darkness.

 **A/N: So I'm writing as much as I can these days, but my schedule is beyond booked compared to the summer time so I can't write as much as I'd like to. Thank you to all who are being patient with me. Anyways... What did you all think of this chapter? Drop a review and light up that review box up! Until the next chapter, keep being awesome!**


	26. Chapter 26

CHAPTER 26: XION

The site was horrible. I came down the stairs to see the aftermath of multiple explosions, and the unconscious Vanitas and Kedrex, covered in blood. At the entrance of the hall was a cloaked figure and an old man, who I assumed was Xehanort. He was actually smiling at the scene of disaster. "You," I snarled. I understood the anger Vani felt every time he so much as thought about him. I summoned my keyblade and lunged at him, but was stopped by another Keyblade. Its guard reminded me of a green block looking oathkeeper guard, and the rest of the blade was long and bronze. The wielder had no trouble holding me off. His strength far outweighed my own, but he was fast enough to actually hit me. "Who's the lacky this time Xehanort? Xigbar, younger you, Ansem, Xemnas, or Saix?"

I leapt forward in a stabbing motion, but my blade was redirected upwards. I didn't hit my target, but I did manage to snag the hood and pull it up. After regaining my footing, I turned to my opponent. The face was one I recognized all too well, but it looked more like a young adult. It was definitely Xemnas's face but much much younger. "This, my dear girl, is Terra," Xehanort answered. This was Terra? "Hold this young lady off until I return." With that he started to walk past me. Every time I tried to stop him, Terra made sure to have me focused on him.

Terra's attacks were strong, but I was too fast for him to hit me. I played that to my advantage. Dodging left and right effortlessly. He stabbed at me, but I jumped out of the way, causing him to fly right past me. When I turned around he was gone. He hadn't left though. I could still sense him nearby. I kept looking but found nothing. "Where are you Terra?"

"Look out," I heard someone scream. Next thing I knew, Kedrex tackled me to the ground. When he did I noticed that the spot I was just standing in had a giant hand of darkness coming out of it. What in the world? "GAH!" Kedrex saved me, but in the condition he was in it was a miracle he was even moving. "Careful... He can... attack... from the ground. It's how... he beat me."

Terra returned from the ground, eyes glowing yellow with a demented smile on them. "You'll be good prey," he said creep like. He was planning to use surprise attacks to beat me, so my only chance to win is through countering. I decided to play his game. I raised my left hand, and with it taunted him. His smile grew more wicked and he disappeared into the ground again. I moved away from Kedrex to keep him out of Terra's attack radius. I waited and waited. Nothing came until I heard something crash into the ceiling. I looked behind me and saw Vanitas falling from an impression in the ceiling. He wasn't just targeting me! He was attacking anything that could throw me off guard. I ran over and caught Vanitas just before he hit the ground.

"It's no good Xion," Kedrex said. "As long as he and I are here, he come after you through Vanitas and I. I'll take him and get out of here. Once I get him somewhere safe, I'm coming back to finish this."

"No," I said. "You won't be able to help me in your current state. I'll handle this alone."

"Then you'd better do so before I get back." He then put Vanitas over his shoulder and lifted his keyblade. "Take it. I'll be back soon, but just incase, I think it'll help if you've got an edge." I hesitantly took his blade. The only other time I had used someone else's keyblade was when I borrowed Roxas's. Nodded my head, and he took Vanitas away.

I turned to face Terra with fear in my heart. I lunged slashing with both blades. He ducked down and I flew over him. Spinning I managed to turn around slashing left and right, with him dodging left and right. Stab. Slash. No matter how vicious my attacks were he could dodge them too. I swung horizontally, left, at his head he ducked down, then when I fully finished spinning around I brought the right blade down towards his head. It wasn't a perfect hit, but even though he dodged it, I still managed to graze his right shoulder. He then performed a stab towards my stomach, which bounced off due to my Mythril armor underneath my clothes. I then brought my knee up and landed a blow on his face. He stumbled to regain ground after a surprise attack like that.

 _This is going on too long,_ I thought to myself. _Xehanort may already have the books regarding everything about me. He may not have known exactly what I look like, but if he reads the most recent volume, he'll know I'm down here fight with Terra._ I needed to end this now. But this is one of Xehanort's victims. Can I really kill him, knowing that there might be a chance of him still being in there? What if there's a chance of saving him and by doing this I ruin his chance for a future?

Terra charged at me, launching Dark Firaga from his free hand. I blocked effortlessly with Kedrex's keyblade, preparing to parry whatever attack he threw at me. He then dashed forward, slashing horizontally as he did. I ducked and hand an idea. I used the teeth from Kedrex's keyblade that resembled a sharp hook to latch on to Terra keyblade. As a result I was pulled in his direction. I then used my own keyblade to sweep his legs out from under him, causing him to fall on his back. The next thing I did was bring my foot down on his stomach in a chop like motion. This caused him to scream in pain and clutch his stomach as the pain rushed through him.

For that brief moment I relished in my victory, until I felt like collapsing. It had been over a month since my last fight and my body was clearly not ready for a fight like this. My adrenaline kept me going when I was in motion, now it was causing me to lose control of my breathing. Suddenly flashes of my fight with Xemnas were rushing into my head like a freight train. I could feel my heart racing. Cold sweat running down my face. My eyes had to be wider than they'd ever been. The images kept running.

The pain. The fear. The fall. It was becoming too much. I lost my grip on both Keyblades. "Not a pleasant feeling is it," Xehanort said coming from the upper floor holding the books that held my name. "Dealing with that face in battle after your last fight, mixed with your slightly degraded muscles. Your reaction was bound to be strong. Whether it was from a physical stand point, or a psychological one."

I was falling apart right in front of my enemies. I couldn't even stand up on my own two feet. I couldn't gather my thoughts together enough to calm down. Everything Xemnas did to me came rushing in. The fight, the torture, the manipulation. I could feel the world starting to crumble around me. Madness was setting in. I could feel it all slipping away.

My mind was snapped back into the real world when I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned to see Kedrex kneeling next to me, completely fine. His injuries had vanished. "It's okay Xion," he said comfortably. He then handed me a vial. "Take it. It's a powerful Elixir." He then took his keyblade from the ground, and gave Xehanort the face of death. "Xehanort, drop the books. Do it or you'll face the full wrath of a guardian." The air felt thin. I could feel the massive power surrounding me. "You have 3 seconds. 1." Xehanort smirked at him. "2." Keyblade raised. "3!" Kedrex launched himself in and stab him right through the head. But it was a fake. Xehanort was already gone. I looked around and saw that Terra was gone too. He must've escaped when I was having my panic attack. "You okay," Kedrex asked, extending his hand.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I answered as he helped me up. "Listen. Please don't tell Vanitas about what just happened to me. I don't want him to worry." He rest his hand on my shoulder and gave me a reassuring nod. "Thank you."

We headed through the library to the infirmary. It was a horrible site. Soldiers everywhere. Some of them with broken limbs. Others completely unconscious. "We were lucky," Kedrex commented. "Many of us were badly injured, but not a single fatality. Xehanort brought all 11 of his vessels. We weren't expecting as much of an attack force as what we dealt with. We weren't ready." I felt guilty. He was here because of me. He want my books. "In all honesty, I think we should be thanking you." Wait... What? "Vanitas at least gave us a warning, giving us time to prepare for the fight. If they had got in without that warning, it could've been a blood bath. So thank you for saving us." I smiled with a very likely red face. What? I'm feeling a small sense of pride. "And now I can return the favor. Xehanort took your books." He raised his right arm and pulled back the sleeve, revealing that the guardian mark he had earlier was gone. "I'm free to leave, until I find and retrieve your chronicles. Looks like I'm helping you guys after all."

Hours went by. Kedrex told me that Vanitas would be out for a while. When next I saw him, he had a bag over his shoulder. "What's in the bag," I asked.

"Medical supplies," he answered, "as well as some food. You'll need it in the dark realm."

"You're not coming with us?"

"You won't need me where you're going. Don't worry. You'll see me again."

"I hope it's soon," I heard Vanitas say from behind us. I immediately ran over and wrapped my arms around him. "OW OW OW!"

"Sorry," I blurted, loosening my death grip on him. "Are you okay?"

"Aside from being blown up by my own traps? Yeah I'm fine." He then embraced me warmly. "I heard you held your own against a dark seeker. I'm impressed."

"She did more than just hold her own," Kedrex added. "She completely beat him." I knew I was blushing again. I could feel the pride coming from Vanitas. "Listen Vanitas. When you find Aqua, she won't be particularly happy to see you. I'd advise not letting her know who you are until time has passed, and she's gotten to know the new you." If I can't call him by his name, then what should I call him? Bob?

"I'll take that under advisement," Vanitas said. "Thank you, Kedrex."

"Well I'm off! Take care you two!"

We soon left in the gummi ship. It had been damaged during the attack, but was easily repaired by some one the men that weren't injured in the fight. So much had happened today. And I can never tell Vanitas about my breakdown. He worries enough about me as it is, and he's got enough on his mind regarding this whole dark seeker and Aqua stuff. When all of this is over, then I'll tell him. But until then, as much as it kills me to lie to him, I'll have to keep him in the dark.

 **A/N: AAAAHHHH! THIS CHAPTER IS SO SHORT AND IT TOOK SO LONG! DISCRACEFUL! I know it's been a while. Thank you for waiting patiently. I want to make more chapters, and with the Christmas break coming up I should be able to bring more to the table. If there isn't a new chapter out before holiday times, then HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO ALL FANS! Thanks for reading and being here. As always, feel free to light up that review box!**


	27. Chapter 27

CHAPTER 27: VANITAS

The ride back was in a form of ominous silence for the both of us. Every time I tried to talk to Xion about what happened at the library, she'd dodge me on the conversation. She kept saying it was nothing. That she just held off Xehanort and his seeker while I was out of it. I could tell she was lying though. She's terrible at it.

We soon arrived back at Yensid's tower where Mickey and Riku waited with supplies ready. "Are we all set," Riku asked. "We've packed some medical gear as well as food for the trip."

"Yeah," I answered. "As long as you're with us, Riku, we'll have no problems getting out." He looked confused by my statement. "I'll explain later." I turned my head to Xion, seeing her looking all down and depressed. "Can you guys give us a minute?" Riku and Mickey respected my request and gave us some privacy. "Xion, I don't think you should come with us."

She immediately gave me her full attention. "What are you talking about," she questioned. "Why not?"

"Because there's something wrong with you, and don't tell me everything's fine because you're a terrible liar." She looked away from me once again. "Just tell me."

"I... I can't. Not yet at least."

"Why not?"

"Because you have enough to worry about already! Aqua, the whole seeker thing, what Xehanort might be doing to make you one! I don't want you worrying about me when you have so much on your plate already."

"Not telling me is only going to make me worry more. Don't you trust me?"

"It's not about trust Vanitas. It's my problem to deal with. This is something you can't help me with."

I felt hurt by that comment. "So it's not trust that you don't have in me. It's faith. You don't believe in me."

"That's not what I said, and you know it. This is a personal problem that I have to deal with."

I turned away from her. I felt angry. No, not angry, just frustrated. I felt frustrated that she would lie to me. "If this is how it's going to be, then I'm not going to let you go." I cast a barrier spell around Xion.

"What are you doing?!"

"Either you tell me what's wrong, or you stay here for the next hour while we head out on the mission." The silence was killing me. What was she hiding from me that was so bad? She tried breaking through the barrier, but it was pointless. "Xion, we made a promise that there would be no secrets between us. I've kept my end of that promise, so why won't you?"

She calmed down and gazed at me. "Because I'm scared. Vanitas, every time something happens with me, you're right there taking the full blunt force. What happens if you take it, but then you don't get back up? After what happened to me, the idea that I could lose you, it's too much."

It made sense to me that she'd be afraid of losing me, but there was more to this. "Okay, listen. I'm not convinced that you're telling the whole truth. So that leaves me with one question. Are you going to tell me at some point?"

"Yes."

As much as I wanted her to tell me, I knew this was as close as I was going to get to her telling me the truth. "Fine." I released the spell. Xion looked like she wanted to tell me something, but I walked away before she could say anything. I joined Riku and the king by the tower entrance in silence.

"Is everything okay," Mickey asked. I shrugged my shoulders. Xion appeared silently behind me. "Well then, Riku, Vanitas, Xion, let's get going."

I opened a dark corridor leading to the one place that I never wanted to return to. As the four of us walked through a dark presence loomed over us. All I saw was a long road that seemed to go on forever. "We're here," I said bitterly. I felt a dangerous vibe running through my spine. Suddenly the road started to rumble. "What's happening?" Suddenly four giant monsters appeared from under the road. They were black with giant heart shaped holes in their chests.

"Darksides," Xion screamed.

"Dark-what?!"

"A Heartless," Riku screamed, while calling forth his Keyblade. The rest of us followed his lead and called forth our own keyblades. "Aim for the eyes!" Riku jumped on the arm of one of them and ran his way towards its face. Right before he made it to the shoulder the giant brushed him off back to the road. "Guess they're smarter in the Dark Realm."

I launched a dar firaga at the giants face, but it blocked it with its tentacle like hair. "we fight something like this?"

"They've never been this powerful before," Xion said. Suddenly all four of them brought their hands down towards the road. Riku and Mickey leapt into the air on her own. I grabbed Xion and jumped with her. "Team up! Vanitas and I will take this one! Keep the others busy until we even the playing field!"

She had a good plan. While she shot at its face with magic I charged up its arm towards its face. It let out a roar and released a shockwave that knocked Xion into Riku and Mickey. And then I felt my anger surge. "THAT'S IT!" Suddenly a powerful beam of darkness surged from the tip of my Void Gear. In my anger, I brought it down on the darkside, cutting it completely in half. I turned my attention to the other three giants and lunged at them. Rage was taking over, but so was the darkness. Within the middle of my attempted rampage, everything went dark.

"nitas... Vanitas," I heard through the darkness. I opened my eyes to see Xion and the others looming over me. "Are you okay," she asked.

I sat up feeling pain rushing all over my body. "What happened," I asked feeling my headache.

"What do you remember exactly," Mickey asked.

"I remember slashing that giant in half, then charging at the others. The next thing I know you're all looming over me. I don't really remember anything."

Riku then knelt down next to me. "The nicest way I can put this, is that you lost control." I was now worried. What exactly did he mean by 'lost control'? "After you destroyed the four darksides, you turned on us." Wait what?! "I think the part of Xehanort that you have has a stronger effect on you here in the dark realm. It took all three of us to stop you."

My nightmare was coming true. I knew that piece of Xehanort would have an effect on me, but I didn't think it'd be even remotely this dangerous. I felt my entire body shaking in frustration. What was I supposed to do if I lost control again? I looked at Xion and saw nothing but concern in her eyes. I started to understand what she wanted, because I didn't want her worrying about my problems either.

"I'll be okay," I said calmly. I wasn't sure if I could live up to that statement, but I was going to try. "Now comes the hard part, actually finding aqua." The four of us stood in silence, pondering over our next move. Suddenly I had an idea. "Hey listen up. I'm going to send out a hord of unversed to look for her. This way we don't end up wasting our time and head off in the wrong direction."

"Good idea Vanitas," Riku complimented.

"However," I continued, "I won't be able to move while I'm controlling them like this, so you'll need to make sure nothing interrupts or attacks me."

Xion took ahold of my hand with a smile. "Don't worry Vani, I'll protect you."

I smiled back softly. "Could you please stop calling me that ridiculous nickname?"

"Nope."

I sighed in defeat. I sent out 13 of my floods. Six went in one direction while the other seven headed off to the other. All that was left was to wait for them to find something.

Hours went by with an occasional attack against us. Xion stood true and guarded my body with everything she had, while I had the unversed search as quickly as possible. Five of them had been either destroyed by other heartless or run into dead ends. I kept searching though, until something came into vision of one of the floods. What I saw was a faint light off in the distance.

I soon realized that it was the beach where I lived for so many years. I wanted to turn away from it but I managed to spot something out of the flood's vision. Right on the shore sat two figures. One of them sat on a rock, covering himself in a black coat, similar to the ones the the seekers wear. Next to the cloaked figure looked like the image of a woman. As the flood got closer, her features became clear. A woman that looked about 18 with blue eyes and hair. It was her.

"I opened my eyes to see Xion and the others starring at me. "I've found her," I said aloud. Mickey let a smile spread across his face while Riku gave me a pat on the back for a good job. Xion gave me a hug with a congratulatory kiss on the cheek. "We need to head off down this direction, follow me."

What took 2 hours with the floods only took 45 minutes for us. It gave me time to consider Kedrex's warning about keeping my identity secret from her. I'm honestly afraid to tell her now that I have Xion in my life, as well as all my other friends.

Finally we arrived at the shore. We were a long ways away from Aqua and the other guy. Everyone started to move forward. "Wait," I said. They stopped and turned their attention towards me. "Do you all mind if I handle this part alone?" Riku and Mickey gave each other a look of concern, but then both nodded and stepped aside. I turned my attention to Xion. "I need you to do something for me. No matter what happens out there, I don't want you to interfere under any circumstances. Can you promise me that?"

She clearly wanted to say no to me. "I promise," she answered reluctantly.

I gave her one quick kiss, and walked away. As I got closer to her, I could feel my fear rising. I stopped at only ten feet away. "Aqua," I quietly called out.

She turned her head to see me standing here. Her eyes widened a little bit at the sight of me. She slowly rose to her feet and began walking towards me. "Are you," she began, "Sora."

For once in my life, I wish I could say yes. "No I'm not Sora, but I'm hear to get you out of this realm." The words seemed to put a shocked look on her face. "The worlds are in danger again, and Xehanort is closer than he's ever been to recreating the Keyblade war. We need you so that we can find Ventus and free Terra."

"Of course I'll help," she replied sincerely. "They're my friends, and protecting the worlds is my duty. But I have a question. Who are you? I thought you were Sora since you have spiky hair and a small resemblance to Ven." I stayed silent for a moment. My head and gut were both telling me to lie to her and give her a different name, or to run like hell. "Is everything okay?"

I looked down towards the ground in shame and guilt. I returned my gaze to her. "Aqua, I just want you to know that I'm not the same person I was before, and I'd take it all back if I could."

"What do you mean? Have we met before?"

I took a few steps back from her so she'd be able to get a good look at me. "I'm sorry Aqua, for everything." I closed my eyes as I called forth my full body suit. When I opened my eyes again, I saw her face through my helmet covered in shock, which then soon turned to rage. She then tackled me to the ground and summoned Eraqus's keyblade, the Master Keeper, and put it to my throat.

"YOU," she growled.

"Aqua no," I heard Mickey scream.

"Get off of him," Xion yelled.

"Don't interfere," I screamed. They all stopped in their tracks. "This is something that needs to happen."

"How can you all defend him," Aqua questioned angrily. "Do you know of all the things he's done?!"

"They know about my past Aqua." She returned her anger filled gaze back in my direction.

"Get up." She then rose to her feet and took a few steps back. "I said get up! And get your keyblade out." I rose to my feet, but I didn't called upon the Void Gear. "I said bring out your weapon!"

I made my suit vanish away, revealing the clothes I had on. "No. I won't fight you." She then put the tip of her blade against my throat. In the corner of my eye I could see Xion taking a step forward. "Don't Xion!" She immediately stopped. "You promised me."

"Why won't you fight me?! Is it out of guilt, pity, or are you just mocking me?! Do you really think I won't do it?!"

"I don't know," I answered grimly. "After all the pain I caused you, I'm actually surprised that you wanted to give me a chance to defend myself. Aqua, I'm prepared to die, if it even remotely makes up for what I did. This is ultimately your choice."

Silence filled the dark air. What seemed like hours of an intense situation was actually only a few mere seconds. I could tell that she felt conflicted. Her rage and her morality were clashing and she didn't know how to deal with it.

She lowered the weapon away from my neck and sent it away. "This doesn't mean I forgive you. I'll never forgive you for what you've done. But I won't disgrace my friends or everything my master taught me to take revenge. Not even against you."

Her hatred was more than justified. I know that there's almost no chance that I'll ever earn her trust, much less her forgiveness.

Maybe it was my fate to be the darkness that so many would exploit, fear, or hate. What hope was there for me when everything wanted to use me, or be rid of me?

The only solace I had was Xion and the few friends I made. If I were to completely fall back into the darkness, would they save me? Would it really be possible to rise from that darkness again?

The only thing I know is that Xehanort's power is getting stronger. Sooner or later it may take over completely and make me turn on everyone that I've come to care about.

"Are you okay," Xion asked holding me from behind. I wanted to say yes but I knew it would be a lie.

As I accepted her embrace I answered, "No, not really."

 **A/N: I feel ashamed that it took me so long to make this chapter. I want to say thank you to all the readers and reviewers that have followed this story so far. I'm going to continue this story all the way to the end and hopefully I can get the chapters out to you guys faster. Anyway what did you think of the chapter? Please leave me a review as I really do appreciate it.**


	28. Chapter 28

CHAPTER 28: XION

As I held Vanitas tightly I could feel every last emotion mixing around inside of him. I turned my attention towards Aqua, seeing her in a heated conversation with Mickey. During that conversation she kept pointing directly at Vanitas, which was really starting to make me angry.

"I'll be right back," I told Vanitas as I walked over to Aqua. "Hey." Her attention immediately turned on me with an attentive look. "Listen, I'm aware of what happened to you and your friends, but don't think for a second that I'll let you talk to Vanitas like that."

"You know about what he's done," Aqua questioned. "So then why are you defending him? How could anyone stand up for a such a cold heartless freak?"

"Don't you dare talk about him like that! You don't know him like I do!" I understood her anger, but one way or another I was going to make her apologize. "When I was lost, he found me. When I was hurt, he healed me. Whenever I needed anything, Vanitas was there for me. The Vanitas you know has been dead for a long time. The Vanitas I've come to know is one of the most selfless people I've ever known."

"Then he's clearly a better actor than I gave him credit for."

I was fed up with her attitude. She could hate Vanitas all she wanted, but I refused to let her talk about him like this. I called forth my final phase and pointed it in her direction. "Vanitas may not be willing to fight you due to your past, but I have no guilt towards you. I will fight you if you insult him again."

Suddenly I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned my head to see Vanitas. "Let it go Xion," he spoke softly. I tensed up in my shoulders, wanting to protest, but he cut me off. "Please." I loosened up my shoulders and let my eyes fall to the ground. I'd never been so frustrated before. Even my old time in the organization, working for Saix, wasn't nearly this bad. "Forgive her Aqua. She's done nothing wrong."

I wanted nothing more than do express my own anger towards Aqua, but Vanitas would stop me anyway. I was left with no choice but to calm myself, and walk away. Vanitas followed me as if he knew I wanted to say more. When we were far enough away I turned to face him. Before I spoke I looked past Vanitas, once again seeing Aqua and Mickey in a conversation, but it seemed much less heated than before. Riku on the other hand was speaking to the man in the black coat. His hood had been removed, showing an elder man with some long blonde hair, as well as some facial hair, and orange eyes.

"Vanitas," I began. "Why are you letting her treat you like this? You're not a bad person anymore. If she knew half of the things you've done since we met-"

"That won't make up for what I did to her and her friends," he interrupted. I wanted to protest, but he was too stubborn to win against. "This is just how it is for now." I wanted to protest, but Vanitas and I were on enough thin ice as it was already. For now I was willing to put my emotions in check, for his sake.

Riku introduced us to Ansem the Wise while Mickey finished calming down Aqua. At last it was time to leave. Riku opened up a corridor of light and stepped through it, followed by Ansem, then Mickey, and Aqua. I was about to head through next until I turned around and saw Vanitas starring out over the ocean. "I could stay here," he spoke quietly.

"What," I questioned. "Why would you do that?!"

"If I stay, then I can't lose control around you. I won't be able to escape, and Xehanort won't know where to find me. I figure that he probably can't divide his heart up anymore than he already has. Which means that if I'm stuck here, then you guys essentially win the war before it starts."

"Absolutely not!" He turned just enough to see me marching towards him. "I am not losing you! Even if you stay here, what's to stop him from reading my book and finding out where you are?"

"I'll keep on the move. I won't stay on the beach. I'll just keep running and running until I can't run anymore."

"Then I'll follow you. And don't you dare tell me that I can't because it's my choice and I'm not going to let you be alone anymore." I took his hand in mine and held it tight. "My new life began with you, and that's how I intend to keep living it." I could tell that he wanted to protest, but knew that it would be a wasted effort. I was stubborn and he knew it. Even if he had forced me out and shut the way back in, nothing would be able to stop me from opening a corridor back inside. "Don't you remember what you promised me? You said you'd always be there to protect me."

He chuckled slightly. "I guess I did. Boy was I an idiot?"

"Nah, I thought it was a sweet gesture. Now c'mon, everyone's waiting for us." I walked towards the open corridor, knowing that Riku was obviously keeping it open for us, pulling Vanitas with me. He didn't resist, or try to stay behind. He walked with me no longer behind me, but next to me. As we walked through the light, for the first time in a long time, I felt hopeful.

 **A/N: So I realize that this is an extremely short chapter, considering my usual chapter lengths. I wanted to make it last longer but I couldn't seem to find anything more for Xion to do here. But bright side is that I have the rest of the story planned out and hopefully will have the chapters out sooner. I have big plans for the next two chapters so stay tuned. And feel free to check out my new story 'OPPOSITES'. It's another VANION, as I call them, story that I'll be doing along side this story. Until then thanks for reading and feel free to drop me that review as I really do appreciate it.**


	29. Chapter 29

CHAPTER 29: VANITAS

As we arrived at the tower, I felt something unfamiliar to me. It felt like peace. We walked up the tower with Riku and the king in front, followed by Aqua and Ansem, and with Xion and I in the back. She held my hand tightly, silently assuring me that everything would be alright soon. Her hand tightening around mine prompted me to make a soft smile, which promted her to move closer to me.

As we walked into Yensid's study, we were welcomed by a familiar face. Talking with Yensid was a man with short straight brown hair, wearing a black jacket, with a solid black Keyblade strapped to his back. It was Kedrex. But he was with someone I didn't recognize. This man was clad in black pants, a red shirt, and a white jacket. He looked to be about the same age as Kedrex with similar brown hair, just slightly longer and with green eyes. Along with Sora, Kairi, and Lea.

Kedrex turned around to see us walking in. "I see Master Aqua has finally been freed from the dark realm," Kedrex said. He walked over to her and held out his hand, to which she hesitantly took. "It's nice to be able to meet you. I'm Kedrex, guardian of the library of _X_. And my friend here is Maikaru (My-caru), guardian of the library of Death."

"Oh then I'm honored," she said as she bowed.

"Easy Aqua. There's no need for formalities. Seriously, we're no different from you."

I wasn't surprised by either of their reactions. Aqua was your typical role model Keyblade Master with loads of respect for anyone with any form of high ranking, royal or status wise. Kedrex was way more laid back than your typical Keyblader, until he recognized a dangerous situation.

"Kedrex," I called out.

"Hey Vanitas," he replied with a grin. "Just the man I wanted to talk to. Follow me." He walked out the door and I followed down the steps, all the way outside. "Are you insane?!" His sudden outburst actually made me jump a little. "Of all the stupid things you could do, you tell Aqua about who you are?!"

"Well I-"

"I mean seriously. Why do you think I told you to wait? So that you'd earn her trust and she'd know that she could trust you."

"I thought about that, and decided it wasn't the right move."

"WHY? You made things even more difficult. Had you held off on revealing your identity, then you could have earned her trust and she'd be a little more open to accepting you and your new life. But now that she knows, she's completely confused and has no idea how to cope with everything. She's feels angry, hurt, guilty about being gone for 10 years, and this is just within one hour. Why would you think that this was the right call?"

"Because the new relationship between us can't start with a lie. I have to earn that trust my way, and _this_ is the way I'll earn it."

Kedrex sighed in frustration. I understood why he was worried, but this was my call. Aqua and I needed to solve our problems the right way. And it would start with finding Ventus. We needed him to even the odds against Xehanort, and we needed Aqua and Sora to find Ventus and wake him up.

"Listen," Kedrex continued calmly, "Maikaru and I are both guardians. He was assigned to assist me in whatever way he could. He's also my best friend. In others words, we'll do whatever we can to help."

I was now confused. "Wait, isn't your job to find the books Xehanort stole?"

"Well yeah, but there's no rule saying that I have to focus solely on that one task. Let's just call this a detour on my road to mission completion."

The comment made me chuckle. "Wait a minute. How did you know what happened between Aqua and me?" Kedrex went silent and avoided eye contact. "Kedrex? How. Did. You. Know?" He still refused to answer. "You read my book!"

"You can't prove that."

"You're not denying it."

"Sorry man," he chuckled. "It was the only way I could keep up to date with you guys. Plus, Xehanort took the recent books of himself and all his other vessels. This means the only way I'm gonna be able to complete my mission is to help the rest of you with yours."

This gave us an advantage that I intended to apply. "Leave tracking him to us. I have an idea. The only place where the _X_ -Blade can be forged is the Keyblade Graveyard. Until he at least has his 13th seeker, he'll keep away and focus on us."

"In other words, you want the two guardians to plant traps designed to stop them."

"And to give us full details on locations of the traps so we can use them correctly. You think that's possible?"

"If I can get at least three days, then yeah."

After working out the details of multiple traps we returned to Yensid's room. I didn't tell Xion about the plans due to Xehanort having access to her recent experiences. Naturally, she understood the situation well.

"Kedrex said that the next stage of our plan should be finding Ventus," I said. "We'll need all hands on deck if we're gonna get the upper hand on Xehanort. Which is why Sora, Aqua, and I will be bringing Ventus back ourselves."

"Absolutely not," Aqua shouted. "I'm not taking you one step towards Ventus!"

"Aqua calm down," Sora calmly told her. "I get that your past with Vanitas is rocky, but you can trust him."

Aqua kept her anger filled gaze firmly locked on me. "Give me one good reason as to why I should bring you along."

"Because I originally came from Ventus." The room went deadly silent. I'd never told that to anyone but Xion. And Kedrex most likely already knew. "I emerged from Ventus when Xehanort extracted his darkness from his heart. As a result I became a being of pure darkness, while Ventus became a being of pure light. I was a part of him, therefore I may be needed in order to wake him up. And Sora is definitely needed since he has Ventus's heart inside of him."

"Say what," Sora yelled.

"You didn't know?" Sora shook his head as an answer. "Well now you know."

As I looked at Aqua, waiting for an answer, her face was marked with more confusion than before. She no doubt really didn't want to take me with her, but at this point her hands were tied. I had to earn her trust, as well as Ventus's. This was the best, and the only way. "Fine," she complied. "But know this. I will be watching you every step of the way. Betray me for even a second, and you'll wish I went through with what happened on that beach."

Sora and I traveled in the gummi ship while Aqua chose to guide from the outside on her keyblade glider, while in her keyblade armor. "She really does hate you, doesn't she," Sora questioned. "I mean, I've seen people with anger in them, but that was something else."

"It's not like I can blame her. I caused her and her friends a lot of grief. I wouldn't trust me either."

"She just needs time. She can't stay mad forever."

I straight up broke out laughing. Sora didn't know Aqua half as much as I did, which already wasn't much. Soon enough, we were both laughing. I never knew the kind of relief friends could bring. Having Sora here made everything a lot easier. We continued to follow Aqua to the place where she hid Ventus, eventually winding up in a part of the universe that was familiar. I recognized the direction we were going. If we kept this up, we'd wind up at the Land Of Departure. The farther we went, the more I felt that she was leading us there, until I saw a castle I'd never seen before. It remained shrouded by an eerie darkness, covering the golden walls lined with green.

"This is where this Ventus guy is," Sora asked.

"Have you been here before," I questioned.

"I... I'm not sure really. I don't really remember this place, but it feels like I've been here before."

"This place used to be the Land Of Departure," Aqua spoke from behind us. "I used Master Eraqus's Keyblade to lock the land away, and to keep Ven safe. I'm am the only person even remotely capable of entering here."

Aqua made her way towards the front doors, keyblade in hand. She raised it toward the door, and from the tip of the blade, a beam of light shot at the center of the doors. The doors then began to shine with a light so bright we had to look away. When the light died down, the doors opened to reveal a tall white room, with 3 lone chairs on a platform in the middle. In the middle chair sat a boy who's body had not aged in the last ten years, fast asleep. For ten years he'd been in here, yet not aged a day. Perhaps this room was like the realm of darkness. Time probably didn't move within this place.

Aqua immediately ran towards Ventus, throwing down the Keyblade that opened the door. This was the moment she'd waited ten years for. Sora walked forward to get a closer look at the sleeping boy. I kept my distance though, since I didn't know how he would react when he saw me.

"This is Ventus," Sora asked. "He looks just like Roxas." Sora backed away from Ventus and turned towards me. "So, you said that I hold his heart within mine. Is there a way that I can release it?"

"Ask her," I replied, pointing at Aqua. "She's the Keyblade master."

Aqua legitimately looked surprised to hear my comment come out the way it did. "I can removed his heart for you and place it into Ven's body," she answered. "But this could be very dangerous. I could accidentally end up removing your own heart as well. Are you really willing to take that risk?" I wasn't anymore thrilled about this venture either. Sora was my friend, and arguably brother. Even so Sora nodded his head. Sora stood in front of Aqua as she pointed Eraqus's Keyblade at his chest. "Try not to move." A beam of light shot from the Keyblade at Sora's chest. Sora winced at the pain but did not move.

Soon enough, we witnessed a heart emerge from Sora' chest. I could instantly tell that it belonged to Ventus. As the heart floated towards Ventus's body, I could feel the anxiety rising within me. Time for the moment of truth. The heart floated into his body, vanishing before my eyes. Ventus stirred for a moment, twitching his fingers and slowly opening his eyes. Soon enough his eyes were half way open, then wide open.

Ventus launched himself out of the chair towards me screaming. He tackled me to the ground, placing his hands around my neck. Sora soon grabbed him and pulled him off me, prompting Ventus to turn his violence on Sora. Regaining my ground I ran towards Ventus, grabbing him from behind and trying to restrain him. "Stop it Ventus," I screamed. "We're not here to hurt you! Just calm down!"

"Darkness," I heard him hiss. "Must destroy darkness." He broke from my grasp, punching me in the gut. His attacks came so quickly that all I could do was guard myself against him. His violent swinging didn't let up for an instant. Eventually I did notice something differnet about him. His eyes weren't blue anymore, now they were completely white. I took a risk and kicked him away from me, trying to regain some ground.

"Ven," Aqua called out. "Please stop." Ventus charged at Aqua, still full of his insanity. I tackled him to the ground to stop him.

"Something's wrong with him," I said. "I think being stuck in here without any from of darkness messed with him! He hasn't had any contact with it for ten years, and it's making him attack anything that has it! But I think I can help him!" Ventus kept trying to push me off, but I forced all my weight onto him, forcing him to stay down. "Sora, Aqua! Get over here and hold him down!" They were too slow. Ventus used wind magic to knock me off of him and into the far wall. Ventus charged at me again, but Sora got in between us. We didn't bother calling forth our Keyblades, since we didn't want to risk harming Ventus. I looked at Aqua, as she stood there with a horrified look at her once close friend's violent nature. Ten years and the first time she sees him awake, he attacks the people that wake him without hesitation. But I knew Ventus wasn't really in control here. "Snap out of it Aqua! If you want to help Ventus, then help us hold him down long enough for me to help him!"

Her face immediately went back to her un-trusting look. "Why should I trust you," she questioned.

"Because without me Ventus could end up making himself a killer!" I didn't wait for a response from her. Sora needed my help and I wasn't going to stand by. I grabbed him by his right arm while Sora grabbed him by the left. I kicked his feet out from under him, forcing him to fall on his back. "Hold him down!"

"I'm trying," Sora replied. "He keeps using magic to break my grip!"

The next thing we knew, a small burst of light knock me and Sora into the air. After hitting the ground, Ventus rose up with six blades of light behind him. "Oh no," I spoke. "That's his wingblade power!" Ventus lunged at us with alarming speed. Forget not calling out the Keyblade. I wasn't going to die so easily. I summoned mine blocking the two swords in Ventus's hands as Sora blocked the two coming in from his left side, but then the remaining two came in from his right side. I wouldn't be able to block or dodge them with out handing over my own death. The blades had almost reached me, until Aqau got between me and them, stopping the attack. I kicked Ventus away from us to get some breathing room. "You're actually helping me?"

"Only for now," she angrily replied. "If you can help my friend, then I'm going to help." Ventus came charging at us again. I knew that Aqua was only going to assist me so long as it helped her friend, and that was fine with me. We blocked and parried his attacks with ease, as if the three of us were in natural sync. "Just keep blocking! Ven won't be able to keep this up forever!" We followed her instructions to the letter. We watched each other's back, making sure that not so much as a single attack got through.

After four long minutes of blocking Ventus's vicious onslaught of attacks, his power finally died down. "NOW," I screamed. "Hold him down!" Sora and Aqua did just that. They held him by the arms and did what they could to buy me time. "His heart has been void of darkness for too long, so anything that isn't light is setting him over the edge." I summoned forth a small portion of dark energy from my own body in a small spiraling orb. "Even a small portion like this should stop him." Aqua looked like she wanted to protest, but I wasn't going to wait. I shoved the darkness into his chest, causing Ventus to scream as if in pain. "Don't fight it Ventus! Your friends need you to be who you are! Don't forget that you are a Keyblade wielder! You are a person, one that has to accept your own darkness! Stop fighting your own power, and embrace it!" A burst of light and dark energy came from Ventus knocking the three of us away. And for that moment, all the adrenaline that ran through my body died down, and everything went dark.

I had passed out, but it had seemed to only be for a brief instant. When I awoke Aqua and Sora were both picking themselves up from the blast. I looked over to where Ventus's body laid unconscious. "Is he still alive," I asked.

Aqua knelt down next to him, placing her fingers on his neck. "He's still alive," she answered.

I stood up, feeling the weight of the fight crashing down on all of the muscles in my body. "Are you two okay?" Sora and Aqua both nodded their heads while rubbing against the bruised parts of their bodies.

For a brief moment, I figured this mission was forfeit. Until something else happened. "Aqua," we heard Ventus quietly speak. Aqua looked down at the boy, who's eyes had returned from white, back to blue.

"Ven," Aqua happily shouted. "You're awake!" She placed her arms around him and hugged him tightly.

"Ow ow ow Aqua," Ventus said, trying to break free from her death grip.

After realizing that she was basically crushing him, Aqua released him. "Ven, I'm so glad that you're awake. You've been asleep for the last ten years."

"Yeah, I know." Ventus then turned his head towards me. He actually didn't seem shocked to see me though. I slowly walked over to him, preparing myself for whatever rage he could throw at me. "Vanitas..."

"Ventus, I...," I began. I was so wound up that my fists were shaking. "I don't even know where to begin to apologize. I did horrible things to you and your friends. And I can't even begin to say how sorry I-"

"Vanitas," he cut me off standing up. Soon enough we were face to face and eye to eye. "I forgive you." I was genuinely shocked by his response, as were Aqau and Sora. Ventus just stood there with a smile on his face. I wanted to speak up and challenge his rash decision. "I know about everything that's happened to you in the last ten years. I was in Sora's heart, so I saw all of his experiences, including the ones that you were in. You've got friends now, and someone important to you. And I know you'd do anything to protect her. I know you're not the same person from ten years ago, and that if you could take it all back, you would. So, I forgive you." Ventus then held out his hand, waiting for me to accept it. I was completely dumbfounded. I expected the most hatred from Ventus. After the way I attacked, and mentally tortured him, I expected more of the reaction that I got from his darkness destroying self. Nothing could've surprised me more, than someone whom had considered me their greatest enemy, being the person that would forgive me faster than anyone else. "Well? Are you shake my hand or what?" Ventus just stood there with a stupid grin on his face, that reminded me of Sora's stupid grin.

I raised my hand and shook his, as a result, bringing a smile to my face. "Thank you, Ventus."

"C'mon, we're friends now. Just call me Ven."

I chuckled at his request. "Alright fine. Thank you, Ven."

The four of us walked out the doors. Sora and Ventus walked on ahead, since Sora had a lot of questions to ask. I turned around to see Aqua starring back at the castle. "Not going to return it to its original form," I asked.

"When this is all over, then I'll see my home again," she answered without facing me. "You know this doesn't change anything between us right?"

"Yeah. I knew that going in. Truth be told, I'm not sure if there's anything I can do to fully earn your trust, much less, your forgiveness. But that won't stop me from trying to make things right. Ven forgiving me was the last thing I expected from this day."

Aqua just stayed silent for a moment. I couldn't imagine all the things going through her head right now. "I'm sorry." I was shocked for a second. Did I hear her right? "What I said to you back in the realm of darkness, I said when I was hurt, and angry. No matter how I was feeling, that was no way to act. So, I'm sorry." Apologizing to me was more than what I thought I deserved. "And thank you, for helping me save my friend." I turned away from her, because those words actually brought a small peaceful smile to my face, and I could tell that she had a smile on her face too, even though I couldn't see it.

I made my peace with Ventus, and I was on the road to gaining Aqua's acceptance. I wasn't just feeling a sensation of peace. I was also feeling the joy of redemption.

 **A/N: God know how long I was trying to make this chapter with my schedule. I hope it turned out great for all you faithful readers. As for the whole Ven going nuts thing, I figured it would be a good way to throw some new action into the story. Anyway please drop me a review as I absolutely love reading them! Until next time!**


	30. Chapter 30

CHAPTER 30: XION

Waiting around for the last few hours has been one of the worst waiting periods of my life. Axel, Riku, and Kairi tried distracting me, but nothing was working. I was too worried about Vanitas being in close proximity to someone that wanted him dead for so long. If I wasn't pacing then I was just sitting around muttering all the bad possible scenarios that could go down, but I had to remember to keep my faith in Vanitas. If he believes that Aqua won't disgrace her loved ones by attacking, then maybe I should believe so as well.

After I continuously paced throughout Yensid's study, Axel spoke up. "They're back," he said. I rushed over to the window and saw Vanitas entering the door with Aqua behind him. I assumed Sora was already inside and on his way up. I was about to run down the stairs before Axel stopped me. "Hey, where are you going? They're on their way up here. No use in running all the way down there just to come right back up."

That was Axel for ya. He'd rather do whichever used up the least amount of effort to do, well, anything. Not too long after that there was a knock on the door. The door was opened slightly, showing Sora from it. "Hey there," he spoke with a cheerful grin on his face.

"Was your mission successful," Yensid asked.

"You tell me." Sora opened the door completely, revealing Vanitas, Aqua, and someone else behind them. Wait. That looks like-

"ROXAS," I yelled with excitement. I ran over and nearly tackled him to the ground. "I can't believe it's you!"

"It's nice to meet you Xion, but I'm not Roxas," he replied.

"What?" What did he mean by that? He had to be Roxas. The hair, eyes, voice, and even his height and body type were the exact same as Roxas.

"Xion," I heard Vanitas say from behind me. He gently put his hand on my shoulder with sympathetic eyes. "Xion, this is Ventus, not Roxas."

Within an instant my perfect image of finally reuniting with both of my best friends was shattered. I released my grip from the one known as Ventus. "I'm sorry," I apologized. "You just look a lot like someone I know." Looking more closely at him, I noticed that his face seemed much more bright and cheerful than Roxas's ever did. Roxas always had a more curious or wondering expression on his face. "It's nice to meet you too Ventus." I composed myself respectably, but Vani was looking right through me. He knew I was disappointed with this situation.

"Well well," I heard Axel say from behind me. "You look the same as before Ven." Wait, he knew what Ventus looked like? "Gotta say, I knew you looked like Roxas, but I imagined after ten years you'd look old enough to distinguish yourself from Roxas."

Ventus looked about as confused as I was. "You know me," Ventus asked.

Axel just let out a laugh at Ventus's question. "I thought I told you to get it memorized."

As if a light went off in his head, Ventus's face lit up. "Lea?!"

Axel nodded his head and gave off a happy smirk.

"Ahem," we all heard from Yensid. Immediately, everyone stood in attention. "Ventus, I am pleased to see you well and unharmed. It has been a very long time and I am sure you wish to celebrate, however we have a new subject to discuss." No one spoke a word. We knew that this celebration wouldn't last for very long, and we were right. It was time to get back to work. "Now that Ventus is here we must retrieve someone else to bring unto our side." Yensid turned his attention towards me, and then to Ventus. "Xion and Ventus, you must go forth, and bring back the young man named Roxas."

Did I hear him right? Roxas? Instantly I was read for this mission.

"Say what," Sora questioned. "Can that really be done? If so then we should all work together to save Roxas."

"Under other circumstances I would agree with you Sora, but you cannot help Roxas, for you are helping to keep him prisoner."

"I'm what?"

"Perhaps I can explain," Ventus stepped in. "Roxas is trapped in your heart, and the only way to free him is with a friend that he knows. That's Xion. However we also need someone who can navigate her through your heart, and that's where I come in. I've spent the last ten years in your heart and know my way around it like the back of my hand. What's more is since I've spent so long within your heart, and since Xion is heavily connected with your heart, we stand the best chance of successfully pulling him out."

"Then shouldn't Lea or myself go," Riku asked. "I can traverse through Sora's heart, and Lea is one of Roxas's best friends, so naturally he and I should go as well."

"Normally Riku that would make sense. However, we're going into an even farther depth than you've been, or that Lea can travel to. Even if it was just you, Roxas saw you as an enemy. You could make things even worse."

I could tell that Riku and Axel weren't happy with Ventus's explanation, but it was clearly the only way that this could be done. "Lea," I spoke aloud, "I'll bring him back. I promise." He smiled at me because he knew that I was going to keep my promise. I looked over to Vanitas and saw that he wasn't happy with the new mission I was assigned. I'd been hiding things from him and now I was going on a mission where he couldn't follow. I pulled him aside to speak with him alone. "I know you're not happy about this, but this is something I need to-"

"I know," he cut in. "I can't stop you from going. If I were in your position, nothing would stop me either." I hugged him tightly and buried my face in him chest. "Listen, I'll be waiting here for you when you get back. After that you can introduce me to your other best friend. After everything is done, we'll all go get some of that salty ice cream and sit on top of the clock tower you told me about."

"Are you ready Xion," Ventus asked. I nodded my head and stepped away from Vanitas.

"Ven," Vanitas called to him. "You make sure you all come back."

Ventus just smiled at him. "You bet!" Ventus put his hand on Sora's and my shoulders. Suddenly light was surrounding me and Ventus. Before I knew it we were free falling down a dark pit. "Keep calm! We have to pretty much free fall our way to where Roxas is! After that I can lead you to Roxas, but then you'll be on your own!"

I understood the plan just fine. "Got it! How long til we reach him?"

"NOW!" Suddenly a corridor of light opened up and we went flying through it. The light from the other side was so sudden that I was slightly blinded.

When the vision returned to me I recognized the place we ended up in. It was the shore of Destiny Islands bather in the light of the setting sun. Where Sora, Riku, and Kairi played for years. I looked around and spotted the paopu fruit tree. This island held so many memories for the three friends I'd come to know. This was where Roxas was? "Ventus, are you sure this is where Roxas is?"

"Yeah I am. And please, just call me Ven."

"Okay Ven. So where is Roxas?"

He then pointed up to the little island where the paopu tree was. I couldn't see anything, so I ran towards the small shack, up the stairs and through the door. When I opened said door, I saw a boy in a black coat on the little island just across the bridge. He sat with his face half buried in his knees and his eyes half open, as if he was asleep with his eyes open. I knew who it was. "ROXAS!" I ran across the bridge at top speed knowing that this time it really was Roxas on the other end. As I came off the bridge I reached out my hand towards Roxas. Before I could reach him though, I was suddenly knocked far away from him by a dark energy blast. The pain was so great that I yelped from my landing. When I looked back at Roxas, there was a vortex of darkness surrounding him like a shield.

"Xion," I heard from Ven. "Are you okay?"

"Why- Why couldn't I reach him?"

"That shroud of darkness around him. It's keeping you out. I was afraid of this."

"What do you mean?"

He went silent and serious. "It seems that when you and Roxas fought, a piece of you was taken away into Sora's heart. Without it, it seems you can't reach him."

"You said I was missing something. What am I missing?"

"If I had to guess, I'd say your courage." I didn't understand what he meant by that. "I can tell you're a little confused. When you fought Roxas your guilt increased itself dramatically. And your courage took a major hit. When you were destroyed, it returned to Sora. That piece of you is in here, and without it you won't be able to get near Roxas."

It wasn't fair. My other best friend was right in front of me and I couldn't do anything to help him. "How do I help him then?"

"Search the Island. I'm sure you'll find then answer."

"You're not coming with me?"

He simply shook his head. "This is your journey. You have to finish it."

I turned and began to walk off alone. When I looked back I saw Ven sitting on the sideways tree, starring out to the sunset. I walked along the shore, the dock of the boats, and the spot between two of the giant rocks on the island. I leaned over the edge and looked out towards the horizon. All I could see was ocean and sky. It was a small island, but something told me that finding a missing piece of myself wouldn't be easy. I climbed down the ladder back onto the ground and began searching once more.

What would my courage even look like? How would I even know when I found it? I continued my walk under the bridge and through a door, leading to the other side of the island. I remembered this place from Sora's memories of Kairi. This was where Kairi would watch Sora and Riku race. This side of the island was covered in a great shadow, since the light didn't reach over the island wall of rock and palm trees. As I kept walking I eventually found something small. A raft with a small person sitting on the edge, with their feet in the shallow water. The were wearing a black organization coat with the hood up. I walked towards the hooded figure, thinking it could be anyone I knew.

"Excuse me," I politely announced. "Sorry to bother you. My name is Xion. Who are you?"

The hooded figure got up and turned towards me. I still couldn't see their face, but I could tell that this person was the same height as I was. "Hello Xion," I heard from a clearly female voice. She then lifted up her hood to reveal a familiar face. My face. I was looking at myself, and my other self was softly smiling at me. "I doubt there's any need to introduce myself."

"Who- What are you?"

The other me chuckled at my question. Her- or my soft smile was honestly making me feel a little uneasy. "Well to make things simple, I'm the part of you that you lost after your fight with Roxas. Your courage."

Well, finding my courage was surprisingly easier than I thought it would be. "So how does this work? Do we fuse together or something?" She simply giggled at my question. "What's so funny?"

"I'm afraid it doesn't work like that Xion. You see facing Roxas means that you'll be facing the guilt you've been harboring ever since your fight. And honestly, I don't think you're ready for that."

"Yes I am! Roxas is one of my best friends and I'm not leaving here without him."

"This isn't about Roxas. It's about you. You betrayed both of your best friends, did so much on your own. When the time came when you knew what you were, you didn't tell them. Instead you fought them both and betrayed them. Even though what you did was so you could do the right thing, it doesn't change the fact that your guilt became stronger and stronger every time you went against them. And after they risked so much to be there for you and fought so hard to make sure that nothing bad would happen to you. You still feel that guilt inside of yourself so strongly that you couldn't hold onto your courage even if you had it."

I'd never thought of it like that before. It always hurt when I had to stand against my friends, no matter what the reason was. Even though Sora needed my help in order to wake up before, it didn't change the fact that I was hurting the only friends I'd ever had in the process. "You're right." The guilt inside me was working it's way up into me. How could I ever face Roxas after so much wrong had been done between us.

Before I knew it, my cloaked self took my hand. "C'mon," she said pulling me towards the front half of the island. We were right at the door when I stopped. She tried to pull me further forward, but I was stubborn and didn't want to move. "Well? Don't you want to help Roxas?"

Of course I did, but how was I going to? I was afraid of how I was going to face him. It didn't make any sense. Why was I so afraid now? I didn't have any problems facing things I was afraid of before now. So why was this so difficult?

"You know you can't rely on Vanitas forever." My eyes widened. What did she mean by that. "You know what I think? I think the reason you haven't had a fear problem lately is because you've had him by your side almost the entire time. There was always a chance of him showing up and saving the day if anything went wrong. But now it's up to you, and you alone. Facing Roxas is something you have to do. Don't worry. You'll know what to say when the time is right."

With that, my other self opened the door and pulled me out of the shadowy half of the island, and back into the light of the setting sun. I didn't fight against her as she lead me through the shack, back up the stairs, and over the bridge. We stopped just as we reached the edge of the bridge. What was I supposed to do now? I looked over at the sideways tree to see Ven still looking out at the horizon. He wasn't listening to what was going on. He knew it had nothing to do with him. Roxas was still sitting in the same position as before. Still shrouded by the vortex of darkness swirling around him.

I knelt down in front of him, just barely out of reach of the harmful vortex of darkness. "Roxas?" He didn't answer me, or even acknowledge my existence. "Roxas, it's me. It's Xion." I felt a tight pain in my chest, as if the guilt was literally eating away at me. I could feel tears starting to come from my eyes. "Roxas, I am so sorry. If I had told you what was going on... If I hadn't lied to you, then maybe... Maybe things would've ended up different." I reached out my hand towards Roxas once again. "AHHH!" When I touched the darkness, it felt like my hand was on fire. I couldn't help yelling at the pain. I pushed forward though. Soon I saw a hand on top of my own. It was the hand of my other self. We- No. _I_ was determined to save my friend.

I inched closer and closer towards Roxas, feeling the darkness trying it's best to push me away. But I wouldn't stop. I was almost there. After struggling through a torrent of pain I finally reached him. I wrapped my arms around him and held him as tightly as I could. "Roxas! I'm here Roxas! Please, you have to come back to us!" I could feel the tears running down my face. The darkness surrounding us didn't show signs of letting up or stopping. "Roxas please! I'm sorry for what I did! You have every right to hate me, but I'm begging you to come back to me and Axel!"

"Xi-on," I heard him say. His eyes that looked so lifeless were slowly starting to retain some of the light I'd seen so many times before. "Xion? Is that you?"

"Yes! Yes Roxas! It's me!" Almost immediately the darkness surrounding us disappeared. When I looked around, I noticed that the other me was gone. Did we join together? I looked at my right hand where she had placed hers. Something felt different now. In a strange way, I felt in a way, whole.

"Xion, what's going on?"

Tears were still falling from my face, but this time it was from the joy of having my other best friend back. "It's a long story Roxas. Axel and I will tell you all about it when we get back."

Introducing Roxas to Ven was so weird, but it surprisingly didn't go over as awkwardly as I thought it would. We took the same way out that we took getting in, just going up instead. The other me was right about something. I'd been relying on Vani far more than I should've been. There's nothing wrong with relying on him, but I needed to learn to rely on myself as well, and to trust him with what I've been hiding from him. I looked towards the path I saw before me. I wasn't going to run away from my problems. It was time to face them. And now I knew that I could face them. The path is clear, and it's time I followed it.

 **A/N: So yeah, this chapter was clearly focused on Xion's character development. I had a hard time writing this chapter so I really hope you guys enjoyed it! Until the next chapter! And please feel free do light up that review box as I enjoy hearing what you guys think about the story!**


	31. Chapter 31

CHAPTER 31: VANITAS

We each spent our own way passing time after Xion and Ven left to find that Roxas guy. Aqua, Sora, Riku, and Kairi stood around catching up. Apparently they all met her around ten years ago. I on the other hand was playing a game of chess against Lea, which I didn't think he'd be the kind of guy that would actually sit down for a game. It was a good distraction for me. Lea wasn't very good at the game though. I could tell his skills were that of a novice at best. It wasn't his kind of game.

"Whoever came up with this game was an idiot," he complained.

"You don't play this game very much do you," I commented blankly. I then took his white knight with my black bishop. "This game is all about strategy. Practicing this game could help increase your strategical skill in battles. Xehanort made me play this day an night without sleep until I beat him in at least one game. I was awake for 5 days straight, yet he seemed unaffected when it was all done." I looked up at his face and saw a shocked reaction. "Sorry, didn't mean to drop that on you."

"It's okay. I just don't get how someone can be like that." Lea's disbelief was understandable as he moved one of his pawns.

"In a way it sort of helps. Playing against him for so long allowed me to become familiar with his tactics, which actually didn't take me much time." I then proceeded to put my queen in a position to take his king. "Check." Lea looked confused for a second. He made a smart move and put his rook between my queen and his king. A move I didn't think he'd make. "What threw me off every time, was when he noticed that I'd memorized his tactics, and then he'd adapt." I moved my knight in closer to the rook. "Checkmate."

"WHAT?!"

"Your rook may have blocked my queen, but luckily my bishop and both of my rooks are blocking the only places your king could've moved to avoid my knight. Even if you could take out the rook or the knight that are in position to take your king out, that would leave me with an immediate opening to take out your king." I then proceeded to pick up the white king piece. "Strategy is probably the only way he can actually be beaten now. That or overpowering him, but considering the fact that the _X-Blade_ is what he intends on obtaining in order to start the keyblade war, and he's used a strategy that guarantees the war beginning again, we seem to have lost both sides of this game."

Lea looked dismal after my explanation. "So you're saying we can't win," he asked.

I then began placing the chess pieces back into their starting positions. "I'm not saying that at all. It's like when you play a game of chess. Even if you lose the first game, you can learn from it and come up with an even better strategy. For example..." I then turned the board around, giving me the white pieces and Lea, the black pieces. I then moved my left center pawn forward two spaces. "Now I've made the first move in this game. See? Now you can come up with a strategy based on that one single move. Making the first move can have serious consequences in battle, however the same can be said for not making the first move. My point is that he's ensured that the war will begin no matter what. But once it begins, he won't be able to make a strategy that'll suit him. With so many kebladers showing up, there's no telling how many will team up with him, or stand against him. After that point, outsmarting him or even overpowering him might actually fall within our reach."

Lea's face lit up with a smile of realization. "I see!" His smile quickly reverted to a dismal face though. "But, what if they _do_ side with him, or not with either side?"

"Then we have to follow the example of great strategists, and adapt to our misfortune."

I was personally still bothered by my roll in Xehanort's plan though. If I was a chess piece to him, I'd probably be a knight. A unique piece that turns in any direction it wants. He wants to make me his last dark seeker. I'm the last piece in his puzzle. Sora, Riku, Kairi, Aqua, Lea, Ventus, and Xion already makes seven guardians. Add in Mickey and this Roxas guy, and that makes 9. Even if they went at him with that number, he'd just use the alternative and attack the seven princesses of heart. Xehanort's plan is absolute.

"AH," we heard Sora yell. "What's-" When we looked over to him he was clutching his chest as if he couldn't breath.

"Sora," Kairi screamed. "What's happening to him?!"

"Everyone get away from Sora," Yensid commanded. Kairi and the others moved away just as a bright light emerged from Sora. It was so blinding that none of us could look at it. When it died down a little I could see three figures appearing from the light. I could make out all of their shapes. One was definitely Xion. Another was Ven. And the last one was shaped the exact same as Ven, leaving me to conclude that it was Roxas.

"Vanitas," I heard from Xion. She ran up and hugged me, while my eyes were still somewhat dazed from the light. "I can't believe this! You, Lea, and Roxas all together with me at long last!" I was happy for her. As I hugged her back I noticed her friend, Roxas, standing next to Ventus. It was true, they looked completely identical. The only thing distinguishing them was their clothes. Roxas was wearing that organization coat Xion wore when I first met her. "C'mon! I want you two to meet!" She lead me over to Roxas with true excitement. "Roxas, this is my... uh... I guess you could say, boyfriend, Vanitas." I looked at her as she blushed. 'Boyfriend'? Me?

"Boyfriend," Roxas asked in confusion. "What's that mean? Is it just a way of saying he's both a boy and your friend?" Was this guy for real? How did he not know what she was talking about. I almost said something until I heard him snickering. "HA HA! I'm just messing with you guys. You should see your faces!"

Xion then proceeded to smack him in the arm. "That's not funny," she retorted.

I couldn't help smiling at her and her reaction. This felt like a nice moment. To think that a few minutes ago I was discussing war with Lea. Now I was enjoying the sight of Xion rejoicing in the union of her friends. I noticed Aqua in the corner of my eye staring out the window. I let go of Xion and walked over to her. Everyone else was talking with Xion and Roxas.

"Aqua." The sound of my voice made her tense up a bit. She didn't turn to face me. Her pride wouldn't let her. She would never want anyone to see her cry. "I'm guessing everyone's told you about what's happened with Terra." She tensed up even more. "Listen. I know you hate me, and I'm the last person you want advice from, but you need to face the fact that for now Terra is our enemy." I hated this. I knew Aqua did too. I couldn't see her face, but I could see a tear fall from her face that she couldn't hide. "It won't be easy, for you or Ven, but you should leave him to me. I have this idea that's been going through my head. Since I have a piece of Xehanort's heart in my, then I should have the power to remove the piece in Terra. But if it doesn't work and the worst has to be done, then I don't want you and Ven to suffer through-"

She cut me off and caught me by surprise. She hugged me with tears streaming down her face. It was strange to me. Why did she do this? "I'm sorry," she said with a shaky voice. "All the anger I took out on you. I had no idea how much you were suffering." Why was she saying all of this? How did she know about anything regarding _my_ pain? And more importantly, why would she even care? "I didn't understand you before. You suffered by yourself for years. Deep down you're a truly good person, but I couldn't see it, and I'm so sorry." I just noticed something about Aqua. She and I are now the same height. I used to only reach up to her chin years ago. "And yet, even now, you're worried about me of all people."

"Of course I am," I replied softly. "I mean, we are friends now, right?" She looked at me with shocked eyes as I gave her a soft smile. "Get that memorized. Everyone in this room is my friend. That means that from this day forth, I'll put my life on the line to protect each of you." I looked over at Ventus who was standing behind Aqua. "That's what we do for our friends, right Ven?"

"Right," he agreed nodding.

"Ahem," Yensid announced himself. We all turned and gave him our attention. "Now that we have gathered every capable ally for our fight against Xehanort-" Suddenly we heard a knock on the door. "Yes, come in."

The door opened to reveal Kedrex. "Sorry for the intrusion, but there's something we need to discuss." Yensid waited patiently for his explanation. "The council in charge of the 7 libraries has decided to lend full support to you Master Yensid, as per your request."

"What are you talking about," I asked.

"Master Yensid requested the assistance of the 7 library guardians for the fight of the keyblade war. We're to fight with you."

"That is good to hear," Yensid replied.

"Wait," I interrupted. "Why would they decide to just up and let you help us?"

"Because of what will happen if Xehanort is not stopped," Yensid answered. I looked at Kedrex as if he was going to give some alternate answer, but he simply nodded his head. "Xehanort's plan is to create a world of balance between light and darkness, comprised of all the worlds. A world where neither reigns over the other. At first this does not seem so terrible, but in bringing all of these worlds together it could end with the worlds going to war with one another once they have joined."

"It gets worse," Kedrex commented.

"It is forbidden to speak of Master Kedrex."

"They need to know what else is at stake here." The two of them stared at each other in tense silence. It honestly made me feel kinda glad I wasn't their enemy. "If the worlds are brought together, they casualties will be far worse than that of the Keyblade War itself." A dead silence filled the room. "After the world was divided into multiple worlds, people left on those worlds eventually migrated to the parts of the world that were once connected to the other worlds." The gears started to turn in my head I understood exactly what he meant. "If those worlds in fact do reconnect-"

Suddenly the floor beneath us was broken through. Out through it came a figure in a black coat. I moved towards the figure, but was kicked back by it. As I was sent flying it then proceeded to grab Xion and knock her unconscious. Before any of us could react they were out the window flying into the sky. "XION," I screamed. I jumped out the window and opened a dark corridor. When I jumped through it, I ended up falling towards Xion and the cloaked figure. It dodged me though. But it hadn't gotten away.

As I continued falling I saw Ventus flying towards me in his keyblade armor. "Grab on," he yelled, holding out his hand. I grabbed his hand and brought forth my full body suit. The figure could fly fast, but not nearly as fast as a Keyblade glider. We almost had him until another figure got between us and it.

"Get out of our way," I demanded. The new figure removed it's hood to reveal a face I didn't think I'd be seeing. It looked like Riku, but younger, with slightly longer hair, and yellow eyes. "What the-?"

"I'm a replica of the real Riku."

"Like I really care just get out of our way!"

"It's too late for you to go after them, so you may as well listen." My rage was peaked. "Xehanort sent me with a message. Unless Vanitas, and the seven guardians of light alone arrive, Xion will die." The piece of Xehanort in me was starting to take effect. I could feel my deepest rage coming to the surface. "You have 24 hours to arrive before we end her." The replica then flew off back to the one place I knew he'd go. The Keyblade Graveyard. We went back into Yensid's tower to explain the situation.

"The only thing to determine now is who will be going to the Keyblade Graveyard," Yensid concluded.

"I'm going for sure," Roxas spoke up. "Xion is one of my best friends, and I am not sitting this one out."

"Riku and I are going too," Sora said. "That's three. Who else?"

Aqua, Ventus, Lea and Kairi should go," Kedrex answered. "I need to ensure that the other library guardians show up. My friend is reaching out to three libraries in one direction. I need to get to the other two. I also need to spread word to the King since he's off doing something important. He needs to know what's going on."

"Very well then," Yensid agreed.

I was ready for a fight, but the fight I was in for would be against the very people in this room. "Listen up everyone," I spoke. "You're not gonna like what I have to say, and I'm going to need you to trust me on this. This is exactly what's going to happen when we arrive at the Keyblade Graveyard."

 **A/N: So yeah, I'm just gonna go ahead and say sorry for the cliffhanger. Trust me this chapter was gonna go down differently, but trust me this was far more interesting. Let's see if you guys can guess what Mickey was doing off screen as well as what Vanitas has in mind. Anyway the next chapter will be kinda short like this one, but get ready for the epicness! As always feel free to drop a review as I love reading them. And a special thanks to for reviewing every single chapter since the beginning! Until Next time everyone! :D**


	32. Chapter 32

CHAPTER 32: XION

The last thing I can remember is talking with everyone in Yensid's tower right before being knocked out. When I woke up I was unfortunately greeted with the presence of the seekers of darkness. Xehanort, Xemnas, Ansem, younger Xehanort, Saix, and Xigbar were the only ones with their hoods down. I tried to move, but I was tied up. They were making sure I wasn't going anywhere.

"Well," Xehanort spoke, "finally awake I see." I wanted to fight him but so long as I was stuck, I wasn't fighting anyone. "It's hard to believe that someone as frail looking as you would be able to change Vanitas so drastically. I can tell you truly care for him." The last time I was against him he had a cocky and condescending attitude, but now it was like he was more curious than condescending. "I must say, after reading your volumes, I've discovered why Vanitas would find you so interesting. It seems to me that you're just as broken as he is. He finds comfort in you."

"The only reason he's "broken" as you say, is because you made him that way," I replied. "How could you do that to him? How could you do what you did to him for all those years?"

"What I did for him made him stronger."

"What you did ' _FOR_ ' him?! You're insane!"

He looked at me with an almost hurt look. "You know nothing of what I've done." He turned away from me and towards a hooded figure behind him. "Keep watch over her."

"Understood," the figure replied. I could tell by the voice that the figure was a man, and a young one at that. "I imagine that you're wondering why you're here. Or who I am."

"I don't need to know who you are." I made it a point to show my extreme disdain in my voice. "And I know why I'm here. I'm supposed to be your leverage. But I won't let that happen."

"You don't have much of a choice." He then lifted his head to reveal a familiar face. Riku's face, but with yellow eyes. I didn't know what to think of this. "I'm sure you have a lot of questions, but the short version is that I'm a puppet replica, just like you. The only difference is that you actually had some sort of life. I can barely remember what little life I did have." I felt bad for him. We were basically the same. "All I really do remember is a memory of someone I promised to protect."

I knew he was technically my enemy, but the fact that the face before me belonged to Riku made it hard to hate him. This was the face of my friend. "This person you promised to protect. Who is this person?"

"Her name was Namine."

The mention of that name caught me completely off guard. "You knew Namine?!"

"By the way you reacted, it seems you do too. She's all I ever really had. I know that she's gone, but Xehanort promised me that he could bring her back."

"And you believe him? He's a liar. He'd say anything to make you comply with him."

"Say what you want, but Xehanort is a man of his word. I'll do whatever I can to see Namine again."

"She would never want this!" The replica's expression went from blank and emotionless to pure anger. "The Namine I knew was a kind and gentle person! She would hate what you've become Riku!"

"Shut up!" His sudden snap actually shocked me. I'd never seen Riku with so much anger, even though technically this wasn't him. "Don't you ever lecture me on Namine." He then turned away from me. "And don't call me Riku. Xehanort gave me a new name. Xiruk (Zeer-ook)."

The sound of that name sent a wave of pain in me. Could someone I called friend, even a replica of that friend, actually be that shrouded in darkness? "Fine, Xiruk. So what exactly do you plan to do if Xehanort actually does manage to bring Namine back?"

"That'll be enough," Saix stepped in. "The time has come. Bring her with us."

Xiruk grabbed me and we started moving. The walk was not pleasant for me. All I could do was take in the sight of thousands of keyblades once owned stuck in the ground throughout this wasteland. It suddenly dawned on me what this war was like. So many people died right here on this battlefield. Before long we were facing a crossroad with eight people in it. I recognized everyone there as well. Sora, Riku, Kairi, Axel, Roxas, Ventus, Aqua, and Vanitas. I wanted to tell them to run away and forget about me, but I knew it would've been pointless. Not a single one of them would even think about abandoning me for any reason.

"Xehanort," I heard Vanitas scream. "I'll do it! I'll be your thirteenth vessel, if you swear that Xion goes free, and none of you will harm her."

"What," I screamed. "No! I won't let you do that!" What was he thinking?! Vanitas started walking over towards us. "Please don't do this!"

"Xion," he calmly spoke when he was close to us. It immediately got me quiet. "Do we have a deal Xehanort?"

I looked at the old mans crooked smile. It made me feel horrible. Nothing I could say would change anything. "We have an accord," Xehanort agreed.

"Give me a minute with her." Xiruk handed me over to Vanitas. As we walked over to our friends despair was filling me up inside. "Xion. I want you to know that you're the best thing that's ever happened to me. You've been the very thing that's made my life worth living."

"You don't have to do this."

"Yes I do." We soon reached all of our friends. "Sora, will you make sure she doesn't go running back to me?" Sora reluctantly nodded to him.

"Why are you doing this," I asked Vanitas.

"Because I do what I have to, for the one I love," he answered before walking away.

My eyes widened with shock. I wasn't prepared for what he just said. When I first met Vanitas he told me he didn't have a heart, so it didn't make sense for him to say something like that. "How long," I asked without turning. I could hear his footsteps stop almost immediately.

"Always," I heard him respond. "You have always been my heart."

When I turned around I could see the seekers standing directly behind Vanitas. "You've made the right decision," Xehanort commented, handing him a black organization coat. Vanitas reluctantly donned the coat himself. The hatred in his eyes was clear. He was disgusted with the situation. "Now there's just one two things left to do." Before we knew it there was a barrier between us and them. "We don't want you interfering with what's about to transpire."

"What're you talking about Xehanort," Vanitas asked, demanding an answer.

"This." Xehanort then launched a beam of darkness into Vanitas's chest, forcing him to scream in pain.

"VANITAS," I screamed, banging on the barrier.

"Go," Xehanort said to his younger self. He then disappeared and we suddenly heard a scream behind us. We turned to see Kairi falling through a dark corridor.

"KAIRI," Sora yelled trying to catch her hand, but she was already gone. "What did you do to her?!" I'd never seen Sora like this before. He was enraged with blind fury. "Where is she?!"

"She's fine," Young Xehanort answered. "I sent her back to your tiny little island." Sora charged at him screaming, but he was already gone.

We all turned around to see that he had rejoined his future self on the other side. Vanitas was no longer screaming. He instead had a blank look on his face. It was uncaring, and unfeeling. I wasn't looking at the same Vanitas. I was feeling horrified. "I'm sure you're all wondering why I've done this," Xehanort spoke up. "Vanitas would never willingly attack any of you for real, so I had to remove his morality. His emotions and memories had to go. As for Kairi, she is a princess of light. She is part of my back up plan, plus if she was still here then your number would be eight. Not seven." I diverted my attention back to Vanitas. His eyes stared though me. He truly was emotionless now. "Now then... Shall we begin?" Xehanort then dropped the barrier.

"Hang on Xehanort," Riku called out. "You made a deal with Vanitas. You swore you wouldn't lay a single hand on Xion. None of you would."

"And I'll uphold that deal. Neither I nor any of the other eleven members Vanitas included with touch her. But he never said anything about himself." Everyones faces widened with shock at the realization of what he meant. "Now my seekers, ATTACK!" Most of the seekers charged except for Vanitas. "Vanitas, you will handle Xion."

"Yes Master," Vanitas complied with zero emotion. He threw up his hood. I couldn't see anything below it except for those glowing yellow eyes, filled with blankness. He charged at me, keyblade in hand. I called my own forth, blocking his incoming attack.

"Stop Vanitas," I screamed. It didn't matter to him. "Please!" My pleas were pointless. No matter how hard I called out he wouldn't hear my voice calling out to him. "Please Vanitas! Dont make me do this!" I could feel the tears pouring out of my eyes, blurring my vision. It was becoming hard to see his movements. I dodged a slash at my head by pure luck. But that luck was short lived. I felt a sharp pain in my stomach. I put my hand on it and felt something strange. My stomach had been exposed, and it felt wet. I looked down and noticed two things. My shirt had been slightly raised. And my hand was covered with my own blood. Suddenly I felt dizzy, and I found myself fall to the ground staring at those glowing yellow eyes, hidden under the shadows of that black hood.

 **A/N: So I did say this would be a pretty short chapter and even though it was short, it was surprisingly difficult to write. I wanted to give Xion and the repliku, or Xiruk as I've decided to dub him, a sort of understanding of each other which I think I'll expand on later. Anyway I really hope you all enjoyed this chapter! You're all awesome for reading this far! So anyway until next time feel free to drop me a review as I really love hearing what you all have to say about the story!**


	33. Chapter 33

CHAPTER 33: VANITAS

Who is she? Why is she calling out to me? It doesn't matter. My master has ordered me to finish her off, so I will. I slash at the girl with black hair even as she's begging me to stop.

"Stop Vanitas," I hear her scream.

I wouldn't stop though. This was my job. But why was it my job? Why was I simply obeying the orders given to me? Does it even matter? I slash and stab but can't reach her. She's too fast. It's only a matter of time until I find an opening. I slash at her head but she dodges, however that gives me an opening. I move in close, using my momentum to bring my blade to her stomach as I slightly raise her top, exposing her skin. A hit was finally made.

The girl fell to the ground with tears in her eyes. "V-Van-i-tas," she struggled to say. She reached her hand out for me. I felt intrigued. A sense of familiarity fell over me. I... knew this girl. But, how?

Where did we meet?

On a beach.

How long had I known her?

A little over two months.

What was her name?

Xion.

I remember now. Our time together. Every last mem- Xion! My attention turned from my memories to the girl laying on the ground bleeding out, because of my weapon. "No," I quietly uttered. "I didn't... mean to..." Suddenly the ground quaked violently. I turned to see the old man that I loathed in the distance, holding his foreteller keyblade in his right hand, and the _X_ -Blade in his left.

"At long last," I heard him shout. "The true _X_ -Blade has been forged!"

My guilt was replaced by an overwhelming rage. I wanted to run after him. To take my revenge, but I couldn't leave Xion alone. But there was nothing I could do for her. I didn't know anything recovery magic that could heal a wound this deep. But I knew someone who did. I scanned the battlefield, searching for the one person I knew could help. And there she was. Aqua was facing off against two seekers. Terra and someone in a hood, now holding the keyblade of master Eraqus. Aqua herself was carrying her own keyblade now for some reason. She was outnumbered and losing ground. I looked to the ground saw Xion's keyblade laying on the ground. I picked it up in my left hand, while in my right, my own keyblade was held. I looked back at Xion. "Just hang on for a little while," I softly requested.

She smiled meekly at me and nodded. I turned and ran towards Aqua, screaming at the top of my lungs. Aqua nearly took a hit from Terra until I jumped in front, blocking him. I countered with enough force to knock him completely away. The other figure came running towards Aqua but she forced him away with a barrier spell. "I guess you're back on our side," she concluded. "You're plan didn't go exactly as expected, but you're back."

"No time for small talk. Xion's down and I can't help her, but you can. I'll keep as many of them off you as I can until you can stabilize her." She nodded her head and went towards Xion. I turned around just in time to see the hooded figure attack. I blocked with ease, but this was a tough opponent. It wasn't too long before Terra rushed back in. I threw the hooded one off and parried Terra's attack. Next thing I knew I was blocking and parrying from both sides. Dodging lethal strikes for my life. Xehanort had his _X-_ Blade now. I was officially expendable. I wanted to check on Aqua and Xion, but my life was on the line. If I fell, so would they. I dodged another attack by the hooded figure and took my chance. I slashed at the head, but only reached the hood. When the face was revealed I knew exactly who it was. That brown hair, old face, two scars, and matched with that keyblade. Xehanort's plan ten years ago, it worked. He'd pushed this man to a dark point. Just enough to turn him into a vessel. I wasn't really surprised. He himself said that fear lead to obsession. And obsession lead to darkness. A fear that would force him to do anything to stop the Keyblade war.

"Master Eraqus," I heard Aqua scream in disbelief.

"Focus on Xion! We'll talk about this later!" The two of them were relentless. Eraqus was an experienced master being manipulated by Xehanort. Terra was less experienced, but he had natural power. The two of them together was almost too much. They knocked me back, but I got back up. Pretty soon the two of them were right on top of me. I gathered up enough dark energy to push them both away. But they came back every time.

"Enough," Xehanort spoke from behind them. "You two deal with someone else. I have this covered." I charged at him, but he blocked my attacks and knocked me away. "You know this is pointless now, don't you?"

"Shut up! You can't talk your way out of this one Xehanort. You're finally gonna pay for everything you did." I resumed my attack, slashing with extreme fury. I let the years of hatred consume me, pushing me to strike harder, strike faster. I let go to my basic impulses, and I felt, almost free. I was getting faster. My attacks were getting heavier. I was losing myself again. I could feel it. I felt this rush in the dark realm once before. A part of me was wanting to let go to even more, but then I caught a glimpse of Xion.

I couldn't do it. I won't let that part of Xehanort control me! I felt the surge of power within me drop almost instantly. That was when the tide had turned against me. I went in for a stab with Xion's keyblade, but it was knocked out of my hand, and I became staggered. Xehanort brought the _X_ -Blade down towards me. I raised my void gear to block the attack, but all that did was slow it down for half a second. Within that half second, Xehanort shattered my void gear. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. My Keyblade had always been able to stand up against anything it faced. Now, it was slowly fading into darkness in my hands. In mere seconds, it was gone. I tried to summon it again, but nothing happened.

"Do you realize your mistake," he questioned. I didn't respond. Truth be told, I couldn't find any words to say. I was too shocked to even register Xehanort pointing the tip of the _X_ -Blade in front of my face. "You chose to not use your power. It's a shame though. I was hoping you'd provide some sort of challenge before I put you and the girl out of your miseries." Something inside of me must've snapped again, because the next thing I knew I was standing up, and Xehanort was stumbling to stand and spitting some blood. "I wasn't expecting a simple sucker punch from you Vanitas. Now that he brought it up, my left hand did hurt a little bit.

I glared at Xehanort and realized something. I may have lost my weapon, but I wasn't powerless. I still had my magic, experience, and the ability to adapt in battle. I covered my hands in dark firaga and charged towards Xehanort. He slashed sideways, but I ducked down and continued my charge. I brought my fist up towards his face, but he back stepped out of my reach. I then pulled a nearby keyblade out of the ground and hurled it at Xehanort. He deflected it, but I had launched myself at him, attempting a kick. He side stepped trying to keep out of my reach. I kept as close to him as I could, pulling out keyblades from the ground and using them to the best of my ability. They didn't belong to me, so I couldn't utilize their powers. They could only really be used as distractions. Luck was finally on my side as he was backed up towards the wall of a relatively large heap of stone. If I had to guess, it was probably 20 yards tall and 50 yards thick. Without even thinking about it, I built up dark magic inside my body. Xehanort had nowhere to go now. "DARK SONIC ROAR," I screamed as sound waves backed up with dark magic emerged from my mouth. The attack was so powerful that it created a dust cloud. I fell to the ground, clearly exhausted from the use of the spell. When the dust cloud started to vanish I could see the range of effect it took. The attack could've taken down a building. Nearly the entire structure had been destroyed.

"Impressive," I heard Xehanort say. His silhouette was seen in the dust cloud. When the dust vanished I saw him standing right where he was before the attack, with the small part of the stone he stood in front of completely untouched. "I wasn't aware you possessed such a powerful spell." I wanted to keep fighting, but I'd used up everything I had on the roar attack. "It seems you're done." He walked right by me. I didn't understand at first, but I then realized he was going to Xion and Aqua. I pushed through the pain in my body and got between them and him. "Just what are you doing?"

I didn't make eye contact with him. It was a miracle that I was even standing. "You... Are not.. Touching them." I was clearly in no shape to fight him anymore, but I'd be damned before I just let him hurt them.

"What a disappointment you are. You can barely stand against me anymore. It's foolish to think you might be able to stop me."

I still wasn't making any eye contact. My spiked bangs covered them, keeping me exhaustion from being even more visible. "So what? You honestly think I give a damn whether or not it's hopeless? I made a promise to Xion. You should know me well enough to know that when I say I'm gonna do something, I'm gonna do it." I pushed through more pain, meeting the old mans eyes. "I'm gonna protect her. Even if... it costs me my life." With what little strength I had left, I ripped off the organization coat. "I'm not your pawn. I'm Vanitas Void. And not you nor anyone else can't control me. Because what I have... is a heart of freedom."

Xehanort looked less than amused with me. "Then you die here." He brought the _X_ -Blade down towards my head once more.

I was ready to surrender to my fate. To die defending the one person who gave my life meaning. "VANITAS," I heard Xion scream.

Suddenly I felt a powerful light hit me. The power felt incredible. I could feel my body healing in the light. My body suit was appearing on me, but it was different this time. Instead of my typical black, red, and blue colors, they were replaced by black and white. My helmet appeared in my left hand. Only this time it was sporting my unversed symbol. And in my right hand, light and dark energies were gathering together, forming into a Void Gear Keyblade, sporting a black and white color style similar to my own new suit. I took one last look at my helmet and put it on. I felt rejuvenated beyond all reason. I knew exactly what to do now. I formed a sphere of darkness around Xion, Aqua, and myself. I launched shadows from the sphere towards Xehanort. He barely had anytime to react. The darkness of the sphere was almost all used up. As the last shadow attacked I jumped into the fray, but Xehanort blocked my strike. He attempted a counterattack, but only hit an afterimage. I appeared in the air and brought my Keyblade down towards the ground. I hadn't managed a direct hit, but the shock wave was enough to make him stumble. I leapt towards him with a slashing motion, but was blocked and knocked away. This new version of the Void Gear was definitely stronger than the original. Or maybe it was my own strength keeping it together.

We stood about 20 yards apart from each other, circling and waiting for the other to make a move. He smiled with confidence. I was going to wipe that smirk off his face though. I almost stepped forward, until a giant beam of light shot down from the sky. It was too blinding to make out what I was seeing. When the light faded I saw seven people standing where the light had shined. In the center was a familiar was "Kedrex," I said relieved to see an ally.

He turned to me with a smile. "Nice suit," he jokingly replied. He then turned his head towards Xehanort. "Listen Vanitas. I need you and your friends to take care of the remaining seekers." I wanted to protest. "Don't worry. I'm sure by the time you guys are done, we might still be dealing with him. Besides..." He pointed up and I could see gates from other keybladers opening. It was really happening. The Keyblade war had begun. "I'm counting on you." I understood what he meant. Xehanort was our fight, but Kedrex answered to superiors, and those superiors wanted him and the others to bring Xehanort down. "Master Xehanort! By order of the Council of _ **X**_ , you are to surrender the _X_ -Blade, and turn yourself in! Failure to do either will result in extreme measures from the seven Library Guardians!" Xehanort clearly believed he was more than a match for them, considering that he took his fighting stance. "I was hoping that'd be your answer."

As their battle commenced I returned to Xion. She was sitting upright, color completely returned to her face. "Vanitas," she said softly with a smile as tears rolled down her face. I removed my helmet so she could she my face. "I like the new suit."

I couldn't help laughing a little. "I don't even know where this all came from," I replied. I turned my attention toward Aqua. She was clearly tired from saving Xion. "Aqua... Thank you, from the bottom of whatever heart I have."

She smiled and blushed a little bit. "Well," she began, "we **are** friends now aren't we?"

I nodded and stood up. Xion managed to stand up on her own just fine. I reached my hand out for Aqua. "Yeah. We are friends."

"So what's the plan Vani," Xion asked.

I looked towards Kedrex and his team, facing off against Xehanort. I wanted to be there, but I knew that wasn't where we were nedded. "We go after the other seekers. Kedrex's team can hold Xehanort until we're done. As much as I hate to say it, we need to split up. Xion, you go meet up with Roxas, Lea, and Ventus. Aqua, are you feeling up to helping Sora, and Riku?" Aqua nodded her head. I could tell Xion wasn't a fan of this plan.

"What about you," Xion asked.

It was hard for me to explain but when I accessed my new powers, I obtained knowledge about something in the Keyblade Graveyard that I had to utilize. "There's something I need to take care of to raise the stakes in our favor. Do you trust me Xion." Without even hesitating she nodded her head. "Then go." She kissed my once last time before turning and running off. War was beginning, and I had a trump card just waiting to be used.

I opened a dark corridor and stepped through it.

 **A/N: So I've been highly busy since November and I thank everyone patient enough to actually wait for the update. I'll try to update soon so look forward to that. Also I know that heart of freedom line was cheesy as HELL, but it was the line that gave me the idea to WRITE this story so there it is. Hope you all enjoyed. Please feel free to light up that review box down there as I loved reading all your reviews! Until next time, STAY AWESOME!**


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